Deconstructing hell
by Summersfan
Summary: Post AtS and BtVS, Faith and Xander are approached by a secret government agency, whereupon they discover Spike's still alive...and has a plan to open the Hellmouth. Complete, and now the winner of the It's Not Fair Award and Runnerup for the Journey Awa
1. Old faces, new places

Summary: Post AtS and BtVS, Faith and Xander are approached by a secret government agency. Surprises all around.

Rating: PG-13, mostly for violence and non-kiddy-friendly themes. It'll probably be kept down to a PG level for most chapters, but I do tend to jump up and throw out the violence at the oddest times.

Disclaimer: I don't own the characters.

A/N: Hopefully not just another post-Angel post-Buffy fic.

Chapter 1: Old faces, new places

The city of Boston was, for all its large, sprawling suburbs, essentially one large demon playground at night. It had more than enough shaded areas and underground tunnels for any number of vampires to hide in during the day, not to mention an unusually high number of cemeteries—mostly of the kind so old that huge mausoleums were the rule, not the exception—for vampires to rule and dominate.

The small red Oldsmobile parked next to one of the largest and oldest cemeteries was out of place. Most Bostonians knew better than to hang around cemeteries after dark—although the excuse they would use would involve the words 'gangs,' 'drugs,' and even possibly 'guns,' not words like 'vampires' and 'demons.'

It was the latter reasons that brought these two here.

The driver, a short, petite woman with raven-black hair and too much eye makeup, sat quietly. She was a Vampire Slayer, and it was her Sacred Calling to be here. Which, considering the way she looked at these things, meant that she was sublimely bored, and would probably have done anything to be somewhere else.

The man was, despite the time he'd spent with her over the past few months, still more than a little nervous about spending time with her. She'd tried to kill him more than once in the past, and it didn't tend to breed trust.

"So, what's your plan?" he asked. The eyepatch he wore over his left eye was a garish purple, one that he'd recently received from Italy as a gift. Faith was pretty sure it was supposed to be just a gag gift, but didn't say anything.

"I slay, we book," said Faith, keeping to as few words as possible. She wished she hadn't broken up with Robin Wood a few months past. If she had realized that doing so would end up with Giles pairing her off with 'Watcher in training' Xander Harris, she would have even put up with Robin's chauvinistic attitudes and mother-related issues. Indefinitely.

But she wasn't really a patient sort of person, and she'd dumped him. And now she was stuck hauling Xander Harris around with her, the one man she'd done the most damage to, and possibly the one man in the world who could intimidate her.

It was an intimidation that had nothing to do with his physical presence. She could kill him with her pinky, she was pretty sure. It had everything to do with the past, and the pain that she'd inflicted on him.

Worse, he didn't even seem to realize the effect he had on her. He acted the same as always—except for crying jags when he thought she wasn't looking, the occasional bender, and multiple attempts to throw himself into frays that were just a little too dangerous.

She got out of the car, checking to make sure she had a stake. Xander followed her, a little slowly. He still had balance issues with his missing eye, which also annoyed her to no end. He was always slowing her down, so that she had to walk when she'd rather run.

And it wasn't his fault, and it was fairly awful of her to resent him for missing an eye. And that made her even madder, that she had no right to resent him for it.

There was a rustling from the cemetery, and Faith looked up, instantly alert. A vampire, acting very scared, almost panicked, ran at them. He didn't say a word, jumping at them with a desperate attack.

Faith moved in front of Xander automatically, punching the vampire in the face. As he rocked back she brought the stake out in the right hand, swinging at his chest. He caught her arm, holding her back, and she kicked him in the groin. As he rocked back she staked him, ending the fight as quickly as possible.

She'd kept the fight quick and moving away from her Watcher, not wanting to let Xander get hurt. The last thing she needed was to have to report to Giles that she'd gotten his favorite new Watcher hurt.

As the vampire was reduced to a cloud of dust commandos appeared all around them, guns in hand. These commandos were decked out from head to foot in black, and wore night vision goggles, obscuring their eyes.

"Whoa," said Xander. "Flashback." He glanced around at the motionless commandos, who were in a circle around the Slayer and her Watcher.

Faith's eyes narrowed and her off-stake hand tightened into a fist. After her jailbreak she had always expected the men with guns to show up eventually, but they hadn't. Even during her continent-hopping the meager influence of the new Council had kept her passport clean.

Not a week back in the states, and she was already on wrong end of the guns.

She glared out at them from under her protective layers of eye makeup, and tried to decide whether or not beating them all up would be a good thing, or a bad thing. After all, if they were rogues, like the ones that Buffy had fought (she'd only heard the stories) then it was okay to hurt them. And Xander seemed to think there was a similarity.

They stood waiting silently, and she glanced around the Boston cemetery. Had they been waiting for her? What, exactly, was their deal here?

She waited, in what was a show of extreme patience, for her. Xander was uncharacteristically silent, doubtless trying to call on long dormant memories. She wasn't sure what exactly he meant by "soldier memories," but he'd mentioned them once before. She wondered if he'd been a member of the...what had Buffy called it? Something with an 'I.'

Then a car pulled up behind their Olds, and a tall man stepped out. Faith glanced back at him, and was surprised to see that, despite new scars, she recognized him. "Riley Finn," she said, wondering if this was proof that there was a God, and He hated her.

Xander turned around, staring. "Riley?!" he exclaimed, caught off guard.

"Xander?" said Riley, a little fazed. He glanced to Faith, frowning. "I don't know you, do I?" he asked.

She shrugged, remembering that he, of course, would not remember her face. Perhaps her name. "What do you want?" she asked. If they didn't know her name, then this wasn't about the men she had killed, and she was even more confused than ever.

Riley straightened up. "We've been looking for a Slayer," he said. "We noticed the ... sudden explosion in the Slayer population."

"And I'm the first one you've found?" she asked, reveling in the irony.

"No," he said. "We've found several. But none that were particularly willing to talk to us." He was still frowning, surprised she knew his face. "We'd like to offer you a job, if you're interested."

"I already have a job," she dismissed his concern. "A sacred calling, you might say."

"We pay better," said Riley, managing to keep a straight face as he said it. Xander remained silent.

She eyed the soldiers all around them. "So you're trying to recruit a Slayer to help you out with your commando duty."

He looked like a hero, like a solid up-right sort of guy. And she knew for a fact that he was a cuddler. And he attended Church. It was freakish, in a very nice sort of way. It was also something she had no intention of getting any closer to.

Sure, she had been reformed, joined the side of the angels. But that didn't change the underlying facts. She was Faith, the rogue Slayer, not Faith, the government Slayer.

Xander coughed. "We can't make any commitments, of course," he said quietly. "But I'd very much like to hear what you have to offer." He glanced at the commandos. "We're in the same business, after all. Maybe a little...professional courtesy is in order." He hesitated before the word professional, and Faith nearly laughed, barely holding her poker face on.

Riley nodded seriously. "It's nothing like the Initiative," he said, extending his hand to shake Xander's. Xander took it, nodding, and Riley offered his hand to Faith, who just stared at it.

She had her limits.

Riley cleared his throat, taking the hand back. "Would you like to take a ride to headquarters?"

"Uh, can we follow you in our car?" asked Xander.

"We can't get there by car," said Riley. "I have a stealth chopper waiting for us."

Xander blinked. "Sure," he said.

They walked back to the chopper, which was inside the cemetery, of course, with more soldiers standing guard over it. As Faith stepped up into the chopper she noted that the guards were alert, keeping watch for anything attacking.

She didn't like this plan at all, but she always deferred to Xander. It had driven Buffy insane, but Faith didn't want to push him. He'd been through quite a bit, and she still wasn't convinced that he wouldn't break at any minute and give up on her altogether.

Although right now, with him delivering them over to Riley and these soldiers, she was beginning to wonder if maybe Buffy was right.

The ride was short, and they were silent for most of the trip.

When they arrived, somewhere to the north of Boston, in a hilly, wooded area, Faith stared at the tiny wooden shack they were led to. "It's an underground base?" she asked.

"Well, we needed to keep it secret," said Riley apologetically. "We've expanded the paranormal side of the operations—and we discourage any experimentation on demons. The whole Adam fiasco was more than enough evidence that we can't use that sort thing for our own purposes."

"And you'd like a Slayer of your own," said Faith combatively, stepping into the shack. Inside it was a spacious elevator. Riley stepped in with Xander, and hit the bottom button.

"We'd like the cooperation of the Slayers. Perhaps the Watchers as well," said Riley. "We have many resources we can offer to your organization."

"We're always looking for allies," admitted Xander. "But we'd be extra-cautious about allying with you—a little Initiative-shy, you might say." His usual humor seemed entirely gone, something Riley noted.

"Are you all right, Xander?" he asked. Xander waved the question away.

"Just a little more grown-up," he said, a little bitterly. "So, you have a whole magic and research department now, eh?"

"And we're training our men in handling vampires," said Riley. "We call them by their names, and we try to keep it all realistic."

"Realistic?" snorted Faith.

"How's Sam?" asked Xander, changing the subject.

"Sam's fine. We'll see her later, when we drop into the tech department," said Riley. "How's Anya?"

Xander was silent for a second. "She didn't make it," he said finally.

"I'm sorry," said Riley, and Faith was surprised to hear sincerity in his voice. "Um, for now, I thought we could start with an introduction." He offered his hand to Faith again. "I'm Riley Finn, commander of this little operation."

"Faith," she offered to him with a sneer.

He dropped the hand, his eyes narrowing. "Faith?" It was pretty clear that he did remember, and Faith sighed. He frowned deeply, remembering the brief glimpse he'd had of her, and clearly matching face to name for the first time.

Xander frowned, not getting it. He had, after all, more or less missed their first meeting. "Um, Riley—?"

"This is Faith, the rogue Slayer?" asked Riley flatly.

Xander grimaced. "Not so much rogue these days," he said carefully. "I don't mean to be jumping and conclusion-making, but I take it you've met."

"Briefly," said Riley. "And she...wasn't herself."

"Oh," said Xander, trying to remember. If they'd met when Faith stole Buffy's body, and Riley was Buffy's girlfriend then... "So, you're in charge here?" He changed the subject again, a little desperately this time.

Riley shook himself, turning to Xander. "Yeah, I'm really the most experienced demon fighter the army has, it turns out. And I even know one of the Slayers...well, two of the Slayers, I guess." He turned away. "We have a, um..." He trailed off as the elevator stopped. "Listen, there are a few...odd things...down here. I should explain, but..."

The doors slid open to reveal a long, empty corridor, lit by cold, fluorescent lights. At the end a man stood, wearing a long leather jacket that swept down to the floor. His hair was a shocking bleached blonde, and Xander immediately squinted at him in surprise.

"Spike?" he said, surprised.

"Didn't he die?" asked Faith, not quite surprised.

Riley was frowned. "What are you doing here?" he asked, stepping forward.

Spike glowered at him, looking at the Slayer and Watcher behind him. "Heard you finally found a Slayer willing to come back with you," he said. "I thought we might get started early. Hello, Faith. Xander." He turned away from them and started walking away.

"What, thought it might be Buffy?" asked Xander, still surprised to see Spike.

Spike didn't respond, the sound of his boots hitting metal echoing down the hall.

"Sorry about that," said Riley. "He's a little odd about anything having to do with Sunnydale these days."

"What did he mean, get started?" asked Faith suspiciously. Riley sighed.

"I had hoped to save that for later," he said. "But he obviously doesn't want to wait." Riley started down the hall. "He came to us four months ago. At first I didn't trust him at all, but he kept telling me the same thing. That he had a plan."

"And you need a Slayer for this plan?" asked Faith, still not trusting any of this.

"I thought at first that he meant he wanted Buffy here, until he told me about the spell you'd cast," said Riley tightly. "He's refused to consider any other course of action, although he's been a big help to us."

"What is the plan?" asked Xander.

"He wants to destroy one of the biggest demon organizations on the planet and break into hell," said Riley.

Xander considered that. "And he needs a Slayer because...?"

Spike was waiting for them, leaning against the wall at the end of the corridor. "Because I tried it without a Slayer, and it didn't work," he said flatly. "This lot won't do, Finn. Send them away, tell them it was a stupid idea."

"What?" said Xander, surprised. "Why not?"

Spike shrugged, turning and walking away from them again. Faith glowered at him. "What is up with him?"

"He doesn't like being around people these days," Riley said apologetically. "Um, anyway, would you guys like something to eat? We have a cafeteria further along with food that's almost real...pretty good, really."

"Sure," said Xander. "Why won't we do?"

Riley shrugged. "He doesn't make a lot of sense," he said. "We've had to work very hard to get anything at all out of him. He's, um..."

"Crazy?" asked Xander, remembering all too well the post-soul days when Spike had stayed with him.

"Maybe," said Riley, leading down a number of different turns. "But he's been invaluable in moving this program forward."

"Translation: he kills things," said Xander, grimacing.

"Uh, yeah," said Riley. "If we can get him to go outside, which hasn't happened except for once." He led them into a brightly lit room with a buffet at one end. "Help yourself," he said. "I'll be right back."

As he half-jogged down another hallway Faith grabbed a tray. "I can't believe we're doing this!" she hissed at Xander. "Are you out of your mind?"

"A little bit," said Xander. "I can't believe it. Spike's alive." He snorted. "Undead, anyway. Why am I not surprised?" He grabbed a tray angrily. "Giles said we need to explore every possible ally we come into contact with."

There was a sound behind him, and he turned, not entirely surprised to see Spike standing there, fidgeting. "Nice to see you too," said Spike sarcastically. "Okay, maybe you lot could work, but you have to promise not to get in touch with Buffy, all right?"

Xander stared at Spike, taking in the gaunter than usual cheeks, the wild eyes, and the hair that, though as bleached as ever, was messy and looked greasier than usual. "Hi, Spike," he said coolly. "Back from the dead? I thought the first thing you'd do is run to Buffy."

Spike shrugged. "Call me a changed man," he said with a dark smile. He turned to Faith. "We're talking about something big, something epic. Do you think you could handle that?"

She snorted, eyeing Spike carefully. He looked dangerous to her, in a way that he hadn't in Buffy's basement. Dangerous. Unhinged. "You want us to help you kill some demons and break into hell?"

He closed his eyes. "Something like that," he said, measuring his words carefully, as if unsure what he could say. "There's a big problem in the world, and we're fighting a losing battle. Of course, they keep the Slayers out of it pretty well, thanks to the whole conspiratorial air surrounding the whole thing." He began to lose it then, his quavering the words coming out faster and faster. "And they'll kill you if you let them, destroy you. Do you have any idea what...?!" He stopped, cutting himself off, looking down and away from them.

It took him a moment to visibly reign himself back under control, during which he backed slowly away from them. "I'm sorry," he muttered. "But I haven't been...well. There are others...a team I've been assembling. Some of them...I've told some of them. It took a long time. Perhaps...perhaps you could ask them."

Riley entered the room at a half jog. "Spike!" he said, reaching out for the blonde's arm.

Spike whipped around, jumping out of Riley's reach, scowling. "Keep your hands off me!" he yelled, his voice high and desperate.

Riley lifted his hands. "Sorry, sorry," he said quickly. "Maybe you should go back to your room, okay?"

Spike glared at him, and then glanced back to Xander and Faith. "I'm not insane," he said. "Not really. I've been insane. This isn't at all like it." He stuffed his hands into his pockets. "And I really hate this." He stalked away angrily, his boots clanking on the floor as he went.

"Sorry about that," said Riley. "Um, I asked Major Hartley to call Spike's team in. They can explain this a lot better than I can."

"Team?" asked Faith, frowning.

The first person through the door looked very familiar, but Faith couldn't place him at all. He was just a kid, a teenager with messy hair wearing an orange shirt and baggy pants. He gave her a look that she didn't even bother returning, one that was unsure and flirtatious at the same time.

"Faith," he said, surprised, and she looked back at him, frowning. She couldn't place him at all; she wasn't even sure she'd ever actually met him. "Uh, you probably don't remember me," he said, smiling.

Faith shook her head. "Nope, not a bit," she said.

He nodded. "Makes you wonder," he sighed. "I assume you've met the crew?"

"The crew?" said Faith, not understanding.

Riley shrugged. "We have a few, um, demons," he said, embarrassed.

"What?" said Xander.

"Well, they're Spike's friends," said Riley defensively. "Part of the team."

"Hey, it's cool," said the teenager. "Um, I'm Connor, Connor Reilly." He extended his hand to Xander. Xander took it slowly.

"Xander Harris. Why is it cool? How is it cool?" Xander asked, frowning.

"It's only Harm and Dru, really," said Connor.

Xander backed up. "Wait, wait. Harmony? Drusilla? VAMPIRES?!" He was looking freaked out.

"Yeah, but no big," shrugged Connor. "If they start getting out of line, I can slap them down."

Harmony sulked into the room. "I hate fluorescent lights," she said. "They destroy my complexion. Oh, hi, Xander." She rolled her eyes. "God, I really am stuck with the losers, aren't I?"

"Ah!" yelled Xander, backing up. "Vampire! Vampire roaming free!"

Harmony rolled her eyes again, leading Faith to wicked thoughts of how those eyes could get stuck that way. Faith pulled the stake back out of her waistband. "That's one problem I can fix in a hurry," she said with a grin.

"Whoa! Slayer!" said Harmony, throwing her hands in the air and backing up. Riley moved in front of Faith.

"Harmony's working with us to—oof!" Faith's left arm slammed into his chest, knocking him back and to the side, and she moved forwards towards Harmony.

Connor moved forward, grabbing Faith's arm. "You might want to move that, junior," said Faith, giving him a patented 'you are so dead' look.

He punched her in the face.

As Faith flew through the air and slammed into the buffet, sending plates and food flying, she realized two things. One, the kid hit like a Mack truck. Two, he was going down.

She tossed the stake aside, coming up as fast as she could, scrambling out of the food and towards the kid. She snapped a kick at him, and he ducked under it, spinning and punching. She blocked each punch.

She knew he wasn't a vampire, but whatever he was, he was good. His powers weren't quite up to hers, but he made up for it with some wicked moves, and determination that she hadn't seen in any fighter since...Angel.

He caught her fist in his right hand. "Are you sure you want to do this? Harm's just about as harmless as a vampire gets, unless you count the soul-bearing kind. And—"

She punched him in the face, rocking him back. He shook his head, scowling, and kicked her, knocking her back onto her butt. "Or we can rock the joint, whatever."

"All right, stop!" said Riley. He had a gun in his hand. It wasn't a normal gun, in that it didn't seem to have a barrel, but Connor stopped. "This is a stungun. It works with directed sonic waves. It'll give you a really, really bad headache when you wake up, so I'd avoid it, if I were you," said Riley seriously.

Faith glowered at him, then glanced to Xander, who met her gaze. She tried to convey the message 'this is all your fault' through telepathy, and then stood up.

"Well, I can see that we're all gonna be friendly," said Riley, lowering the gun. "That's good. Listen, um, maybe Connor better explain about the vampires."

"I'll help!" Said Harmony.

Faith glared at her. "Why don't you just get gone, okay?" she asked. "That's about all we'll be needing from you."

Xander nodded uncertainly. "Yeah, what she said." He was sweating, noted Faith. That wasn't a good sign.

Connor frowned. "Harm, why don't you go help the guys hold onto Dru for a while, okay? And if you see Spike, uh...well, just keep your distance."

Xander stared at Connor. "Okay, you look human, but I just saw you go toe to toe with a Slayer. A very strong Slayer who doesn't back down easily. And you knocked her on her butt."

Connor sighed, grabbing a chair and sitting on it backwards, his arms crossed on the back, in front of his chest. "We have a mission," he said slowly. "It's kind of an important mission. And we're going to need some help."

--

A/N: Connor, Spike, Faith, Xander, Drusilla, and Harmony? Not to mention Riley? Sounds like a bad soap opera.


	2. Vengeance

Disclaimer: I don't own a thing.

Summary: Post AtS and BtVS, Faith and Xander are approached by a secret government agency. Surprises all around.

Rating: PG-13

Chapter 2: Vengeance

Faith eyed Connor speculatively, glancing to Xander, who grabbed two chairs and dragged them opposite Connor's chair, sitting in one of them. She reluctantly sat in the other, splaying her legs wide and leaning over her knees, resting her elbows on them.

Riley backed away. "I'd better go, um, make sure there's no problems with Harmony." He left quickly.

"So, a mission," said Xander. "And you want us to be part of your pretty lights and pony show?"

Connor smiled. "Well, we don't really need more firepower—Spike's just running scared. And we could really use a real Watcher instead of you—no offense."

"None taken," said Xander. "To do what?"

"Break us into hell," said Connor calmly. "A hell dimension, to be specific. One of the bad ones. The worst, according to most." A smile played over his mouth. "But, anyway, you probably don't want to hear all the boring details. You want to know about the vampires."

"Yeah, that might help," said Xander, a little nervously.

"First was Drusilla," said Connor. "We needed her. Bad. I mean, with Cordelia dead, we had no connection to the Powers. No visions, no seers, no prophecies, nothing. This was back in the brainstorming part of this crazy plan, when it was just Spike and I. Before we came here."

"You and Spike?" asked Faith.

"Yeah," said Connor. "We're friends from way back. Or not so way back. Anyway, we needed her visions really bad. And the two of us couldn't hold her. That's when Spike made a phone call, brought Riley into the mix. That wasn't pretty."

"Wait, wait," said Faith, holding up a hand. "I don't mean to nitpick, but just where did you learn to hit like that? And how did Spike come back to life?"

Connor shrugged. "Long story. And longer story. Anyway, Drusilla's dangerous, sure, but nothing I can't handle. Harmony...well, let's just say she owes us one."

Xander stared at the kid. "Okay, you've lost me in a major way here. You have a mission, you keep saying."

"That," said Connor, sighing. "There's this organization, Wolfram and Hart." His face turned suddenly into a very dangerous scowl. "And they screwed around with me and mine once too often."

Faith frowned. "The lawyers that wanted Angel killed?"

Connor smiled. "Those are the ones." His smiled faded. "The ones who killed him."

"They finished Dead-boy off?" asked Xander. "Wow."

Connor glanced at Xander. "You knew Angel?" he asked, surprised. "Wow."

"Yeah, back in the day," shrugged Xander. "So you want to destroy some evil lawyers. That's it?"

"Well, we get the occasional rain of fire, army of demons, and legions of killers in to stop us," replied Connor. "Not to mention Spike's gone almost totally bonkers, almost as bad as the doll-lady downstairs. But it's, you know, our mission."

"Not the army's mission?" asked Faith skeptically, wondering by now just whose idea it was to break into hell. Wasn't that more of a bad-guy plan, anyway?

"We made it theirs," said Connor. "Came to them and demanded their help, really. Of course, it helps that Spike knows them, and that we have so much to offer. We help out with lots of their little problems, they help us out with our one big problem."

Faith blinked. "Okay, I get that. You and crazy-boy, along with a bunch of vampires and soldier-boy, want to kill lawyers."

"Not the lawyers," replied Connor. "The Senior Partners. The ones who live in this hell dimension. We need some major magic to get in."

Faith sighed, standing up. "Great. We have some major magic-users back in Italy."

"No," said Spike, standing in the doorway. Faith sighed.

"That sneaking thing? Stop while you're still undead," she advised.

Spike glowered at them. "If you want to bring in your Scooby gang, then you can just walk, right now. They aren't part of this, and they aren't going to be part of this."

Faith frowned. "Because they already turned you down, didn't they?"

"What?" asked Xander, a step behind her.

"It's obvious, isn't it?" asked Faith. "You already asked Buffy for help, and she turned you down. I wonder why that would be?"

Spike scowled. Connor stood up, standing between Faith and Spike. "Well, that's it, then," said Connor. "You're right, of course. Your friends in Italy turned us down, that's fine. You want to be part of this or not?"

"Help crazed vampires break into hell?" asked Xander. "I'm thinking that really wouldn't be the best plan in the world."

Spike chuckled. "Actually, it is the best plan in the world," he said. "Right, D-boy?"

Connor grimaced. "What Spike means is that there is an organization out there that is so evil it must be destroyed. They've been bringing the Apocalypse closer, making earth hell, every day since they started. Wolfram and Hart must be destroyed, and that's all there is to it."

"Count us out," growled Xander.

"You said you were Angel's friend," said Connor to Faith. She looked at him in surprise, still not remembering him at all. The sudden reference to events she couldn't remember sparked a feeling of déjà vu. "He made it his life's work to destroy these people."

"And they destroyed him," said Spike. "Sure you don't want to dole out a little payback on these folks?" His gaze was hot and angry, and Faith felt a flush permeate her body as the challenge rolled over her.

It was a cheap shot he'd thrown at her, the kind that she reveled in. And she never had got to give him a proper beating...or anything. She glared back, letting her own gaze gain a little heat to match his anger.

"You want to say something, Angel wannabe?" she asked. "Nice soul, there, by the by. Just like your Sire's."

To her surprise Spike laughed, letting the insult roll of his back. "D-boy, you want to get her out of here?"

Connor sighed. "All right, why don't we give you the full tour before we leave, okay?"

"Full tour?" asked Faith suspiciously.

Connor shrugged, putting a hand on Spike's arm. Faith watched his arm, noting supernaturally strong muscles flexing, the grip on Spike's arm tightening in what had to be a very, very painful way.

"Spike?" asked Connor calmly.

"I'll go talk to Dru," said Spike, his voice just as calm.

Faith shook her head. "The kid can touch you, but Captain America can't?"

Spike growled under his breath. "It's different," he said. He walked away, leaving Connor standing there. Connor took a deep breath.

"I know this is all just a bit more wacky than anything else, but listen, this is a major thing. In fact...HARTNEY?!" He screamed the last word, clutching his ear and tearing out a tiny earpiece. "Agh! God, Hartney!" He threw the earpiece down angrily, shaking his head. It shattered on the floor, pieces dashing everywhere.

Xander had thrown himself backwards when Connor screamed, and now fell to the floor, feeling heavier than he had in a long time. "Oof," he said quietly.

"What was that?" asked Faith.

Connor shook his head. "Idiots gave me another comlink set to normal volumes," he said, rubbing his ear. "Hold on, I need to go ask what that was all about."

Riley came running down the corridor. "Connor, did you hear the report?"

"Some idiot gave me another normal comlink!" whined Connor.

"Did you smash it?" asked Riley quickly, as if he'd asked before.

"Well, yeah," said Connor. "It hurt like he—it hurt."

Xander frowned. "Why did it hurt?" he asked, surprised.

"Connor's hearing," said Riley. "Since it's so much more sensitive than human hearing—closer to vampire hearing, really—the comms don't work so well for him."

"Vampire hearing?" asked Faith, surprised and suspicious.

Connor shrugged. "Miraculous, isn't it?" he asked. "What's the sitch?" He directed the question at Riley, who took a deep breath.

"We found the guy," he said. "Just like Spike said, he was hiding out in the warehouses."

"What guy?" asked Faith.

"Old friend," said Connor tightly. "All right, this is the way it goes down. I'm going to take point. Is Spike...?"

"Lost in lala land," said Riley rightly.

"Then I take point," said Connor. He glanced to Faith. "I don't suppose you have any objections to our little plan?"

"Who exactly are we talking about?" she asked.

Connor smiled. "He's a demon, if that's what you're asking," he replied. "Possibly you've heard of him. Goes by the name of D'Hoffryn."

"D'Hoffryn—what?" said Xander, confused.

"Never heard of him," dismissed Faith.

"The Vengeance Demon? You're in way over your head!" said Xander, freaking out.

Connor moved to the wall and punched a small button. "No, we're not," he said tightly. "Can I borrow your comlink, Riley?"

Riley grimaced, taking out his earpiece and handing it to Connor. Connor held it in front of his face. "All right, Spike, I know you're listening. Get the magic team ready, and pin him down."

"Pin him down?" asked Faith.

--

The helicopters were circling the lone warehouse, with spotlights shining down cold white light in the darkness, pinpointing it. There was hardly a shadow within the well-lit zone.

Connor stood nearby, donning a black bulletproof vest with a number of medieval weapons hanging off it. He selected a broadsword, picking it up carefully and swinging it around experimentally.

"My personal favorite," said the teenager with a dark grin.

"Do you have any idea what kind of powers a vengeance demon has?" asked Xander, still freaking. Faith stood in front of him, wondering the same thing. "Even Buffy, on her best day, couldn't handle Anya!"

"Anya?" asked Connor. "Never mind. This dude and I, we need to talk. I intend to make my points," here he jabbed the broadsword forward, "and listen hard to whatever he says."

Connor marched forward, towards the warehouse.

"Well, the kid does have _cojones,_" Faith said. "Give him his due."

"He's also freaking dead!" snapped Xander. "I've seen these guys in action, Faith, and you don't come out alive."

There was a rustle beside Xander, and he whirled to see Spike. "Gah!" he said. "I thought you didn't come out?"

Spike had a lighter in his right hand, and he twirled it nervously. His face had a soft, almost innocent look to it. "I've seen them in action too, Harris. You think we'd start this lightly? I wish it could be different, you know. I wish we could do this the safe way." His face hardened. "But they brought this war to us, and we will not stop. Not now, not ever." He snapped his fingers, the lighter disappearing. "Oh, we're ready for this guy."

"Ready? How, ready?" asked Xander. Faith nodded, moving between Spike and Xander.

"Yes, some details might be in order," she said tightly.

There was a loud crack, and the front of the building exploded, a dark figure clad in long robes slamming through the wall and falling to the ground.

"Details?" asked Spike. "Ask D-boy there for details."

"You keep calling him that. What does it mean?" asked Faith tightly. She didn't trust any of the government boys, she didn't trust Connor, and she really didn't trust Spike.

"The Destroyer," said Spike with a smirk. "Ask around, it's his name." He moved forward. "All right, D'Hoffryn. Good run, very nicely fought."

The figure in robes struggled to his feet. "This betrayal will not be tolerated!" he snarled. "I will have my revenge."

"Sure," said Spike in a soothing voice. "D-Boy?"

Connor leapt forward, smashing into D'Hoffryn, knocking him onto the ground and pinning him, putting his knee on the demon's throat. "You've been to Quor'toth, haven't you?" Connor asked.

"Silly boy," hissed D'Hoffryn. "I was there when that grand new dimension was opened; I was there when you arrived."

"Then you know how to get back in," said Spike, moving closer. "You can tear at the fabric of reality—you can make that jump." He leaned down over the demon. "We could give you back your powers, you know. Give back everything we tore from you. What about it, eh?"

"I'd sooner be sent to Quor'toth for all eternity than band with you, mongrel!" spat D'Hoffryn. "This darkness you spread, this cancer you have become, you think it scares me?"

"It should," said Spike roughly. "I'm kind of glad it doesn't, though. Come on, Hoffy. Tell us what we need to know." He leaned closer, his voice dropping. "I could have the Destroyer let you go. I could fix all this. You know I can."

"Halfrek—my agents—?" coughed D'Hoffryn.

"That would be your problem," said Spike coldly. "Come on, make it easy on yourself. Just give us the keys to the kingdom."

D'Hoffryn smiled, a grotesque grin. "William...you are no more than a gnat, a flea. They will crush you, William."

Spike's face twisted into an absurd mask of rage and hatred. "Bollocks!" he hissed. "You know as well as I do that what you want is forever out of your reach! I will destroy you utterly, consume you utterly!" He reached down, his hand grabbing D'Hoffryn's face like a claw, untrimmed fingernails digging into the demon's face. "Vengeance may be your calling, but it is my gift!" He growled the last words, then stood up, breathing slowly.

Connor tightened his grip. "He's not going to crack," he said finally.

"No, he's not," sighed Spike. "He's too tough, too old. Too determined." He turned away angrily. "Let him go."

D'Hoffryn stared at them as the teenager let him up. "You're insane!" he said, turning and grabbing the sword Connor was holding, charging at Spike with it.

Spike whirled, kicking the sword out of the vengeance demon's hand with a lightning quick kick. D'Hoffryn punched Spike, knocking him off his feet and onto the ground, and moved to kick down at his head.

Spike rolled, and then Connor attacked D'Hoffryn from behind, using an axe he'd grabbed off his back. With a few blows he'd knocked the demon away from Spike and was driving him back.

"You think you're all that, kid?" asked D'Hoffryn desperately.

Connor grunted, blocking a blow from the demon. "You know what? If you're not going to help us—then you're just dead weight." He slammed the axe into the demon, burying the head in D'Hoffryn's chest.

D'Hoffryn threw his head back and laughed. "You think something like that will end this?" he asked, angrily. He tore the axe out of his chest, moving towards Connor, swinging it.

Spike moved in behind him, grabbing him by the shoulders, and Connor batted the axe away, reaching into D'Hoffryn's shirt.

"Do you know," said Spike softly, "I do believe Anya would approve of this."

"What?" said D'Hoffryn desperately.

"Well, never go for the kill—when you can go for the pain," hissed Spike.

Connor smashed a fist into D'Hoffryn's chest, and there was a flash of light. D'Hoffryn gasped, and Spike pushed him away, knocking him to the ground. "Little girls, Hoffy," said Spike. "You preyed on them, turning them into monsters and then killing them when you were done with them."

Faith was watching carefully. "Are you following this?" she asked.

"D'Hoffryn betrayed Anya," said Xander tightly. "Turned her human and killed her best friend." The tightness in his voice was not directed at Spike for once, noted Faith. It was directed at the demon he was staring down at. Faith turned back uncertainly.

"Why?" gasped D'Hoffryn.

Spike began twirling the lighter in his hand again. "It's a mission," he replied. "I doubt you'd understand it." He glared at the demon, and for a second Faith thought he would just kill him.

"You can't do this to me!" yelled D'Hoffryn.

"What, strip you of your powers and leave you to run away from all your former friends and current enemies?" asked Connor. "Well, if you ever just want to surrender to us and cooperate, I'm sure we'd be okay with that."

The vengeance demon stood up shakily, and stalked away. Connor watched him go, a grin on his face. "And superman strikes again," he said.

"Don't get cocky, junior," said Spike, flipping the lighter opened. "That's my job." He turned back to Spike and Xander, who were staring at him. "Can't believe Finn brought them back," he sighed, snapping the lighter closed. "What a moron."

"Complete dipstick," agreed Connor. "What next?"

Spike sighed. "We'll need to find another conduit. This one's just gone." He examined Xander and Faith closely. "I'll take them back to their car. You keep the soldiers occupied."

Connor nodded, taking off the black vest he'd worn over his orange shirt. "They're gonna call Italy," he said with a worried tone of voice. Spike snorted.

"Then they'll call us the bad guys. Big deal." He walked towards Xander and Faith. "Come on, gotta get you back to your cemetery and out of my hair."

Xander glared at him. "Yeah, right," he said. Spike started moving away, and the Slayer and Watcher fell in behind him, both a little nervously.

"What exactly is going on?" asked Xander.

Spike shrugged. "I told you," he growled impatiently. "Mission, hell, Senior Partners. Do you even listen to me at all?"

Faith sighed. "He did fight with us in Sunnydale," she noted. "Burned up for us. And how exactly did you come back from that?"

"Thanks to a little weasel named Lindsey, actually," said Spike. "Kind of strange, really. He gave me a new lease on life just to burn Angel." He chuckled, running his hands through his hair. "Ironic, inn't it?"

"How did Angel die?" asked Faith softly, remembering the friend that she had been willing to let bite her to save.

Spike snorted. "Don't ask stupid questions," he said, his voice harsh and angry. "What do you care, anyway? You don't want to fight the lawyers, you just want your safe little fight."

"Why wouldn't Buffy help you?" asked Xander, a little sarcasm in his voice.

"Because I was on Angel's side for once in my life!" snarled Spike. "Because Angel was evil and everybody knows it, apparently! Because I...and Angel...and Blue, and Charley, and even Head Boy...we all did some things, right there at the end, that nobody else could possibly understand."

"Angel? Evil?" asked Faith. "Did he lose his soul again?"

"No, not even remotely," sighed Spike. "Wouldn't that have made the whole thing so much simpler?" His pace was nearly breakneck, but Faith saw a street sign that she recognized.

"You know Boston pretty well now, huh?" she asked.

"Four months ago Connor and I showed up here, looking for Finn," said Spike. He stopped. "Know your way from here?"

"You know," said Xander thoughtfully. "You're a vampire, and she's the Slayer. We could just take you along with us, make you answer a few questions."

Spike snorted in disgust. "First, you couldn't if you tried. Second, ..." he trailed off, a disconsolate look on his face. "Well, that's a little beyond me at the moment. Do you suppose that maybe you could ask that question again in a few weeks?"

"You mean you plan to break into hell soon?" asked Faith.

"Time passes so quickly in hell," said Spike. "Every minute I stand still another month, another year slips by. We don't have a whole bloody load of time left! We barely have a minute left. And no conduit." He looked away from them, his expression almost one of brooding. "You know, I don't much fancy the role I've been asked to play, but I'll not shirk it." He turned and slipped off into the night.

--

Faith sat patiently on the hotel bed while Xander dialed the number. "What if he really is fighting some kind of noble fight?" she asked.

"Then he won't mind Buffy's help, will he?" asked Xander. "Besides, he had Drusilla down there—it doesn't really help my peace of mind! Hello?"

"Hello?" said a faint and staticy voice.

"Giles? This is Xander."

"Oh, Xander! Is everything going well with you and Faith?"

"We found Spike, and he's got a secret government organization on his side, and they're going to break into hell very soon."

For a long moment there was silence on the line. Then Giles spoke again. "I'll call Buffy immediately. We should arrive, um, tomorrow. At some point, depending what tickets we can get. Thank you."

There was a click, and the line went dead. Faith swallowed. "He didn't take a whole lot of convincing, did he?" she asked.

Xander thought about it for a moment. "This is turning a little bit scary. It's as if they were already looking for Spike."

Faith shook her head. "I can believe he went bad, but Angel?"

Xander grimaced. "Giles and Buffy can fill us in."


	3. l'Eterno

Disclaimer: I don't own a thing.

Summary: Post AtS and BtVS, Faith and Xander are approached by a secret government agency. Surprises all around.

Rating: PG-13

Chapter 3: _l'Eterno_

The cell was deep and dark, with pools of blackness shielded entirely from the sight of the guards. The guards who were waiting, outside, stood behind a second set of bars, with supersoakers filled with Holy Water, stun guns capable of dropping an elephant, and stake-guns capable of killing a vampire from nearly a mile away.

Inside the cell sat a woman, or something that had formerly been a woman, ensconced in the darkness and just waiting for a chance to escape, to destroy, to continue her single-minded pursuit of the destruction of the earth.

Into this hall of death Spike moved like a shadow, clearly more comfortable here than in the fluorescent halls nearby.

Drusilla moved to the cage door, a sad expression on her face. She didn't say anything, staring at her Dark Prince, as if somehow she could take them back to a time before they had been enemies, before he had offered to stake her for Buffy.

As if reading her mind he sighed. "Buffy won't help me." He said it slowly, as if to himself. "All the white hats in the world rode off into the sunset, leaving us between the cracks trying to finish the job."

"It's not you," mewled Drusilla. "All this fighting for ashes and nothing, it's not you at all."

Spike moved closer, leaning against the cage she was held in, reaching into the cell with one arm. His hand rested on her shoulder. "Come on, Dru. Give me a conduit," he whispered. "The stars can tell you how to get into hell, can't they?"

She smiled, a dark, secretive smile. "There's a demon who rends worlds at will," she whispered. "Miss Edith tells me that he has found a home deep in the darknes." She smiled. "He's my own little brother."

Spike shook his head. "We all know about Connor, love. Tell me about something else, something that can get back in."

She shook his hand of her arm, sulking backwards. "You live to destroy me now, just like him."

"No, love," said Spike patiently. "D-boy's just neglected, s all. Tell me how to get back to hell!" His voice began to rise impatiently, anger taking over and flushing his effort at appeasement away. "Tell me!" he roared.

She smiled. "Little brother and I have nothing in common but a deep love for blood," she said, her voice sing-songing. "You want your answers? Ask the lawyer."

Spike hesitated. "All the lawyers are dead, love. Long dead." He said it calmly, his tantrum past.

"Not all of them," she said. "One of them is still out there, still hiding—and she hates you so bad, she'll kill you." She giggled. "Because you stabbed her in the back. She'll kill you."

Spike thought about it for a minute. "Eve," he muttered, triumph in his voice. "Thanks, Dru." He pulled away and marched off quickly.

She watched him go sadly. "And you'll destroy yourself," she whispered.

--

Faith finished smoking her cigarette and tossed the butt into the waist-high airport ashtray, glaring at the crowd nearby, almost daring them to get closer to her.

Xander, sitting beside her trying to read a thick tome, shook his head. "What does 'lemniscate' mean?" he asked.

"Dunno," shrugged Faith. "Do you see tweed? I don't see tweed."

"Maybe he'll know what lemniscate means," said Xander. "Because if the moon does this, whatever it is, then it's a portent."

"Maybe it means change colors," suggested Faith.

"Then wouldn't it say change colors?" Asked Xander. "I hate Giles-books. They never say what they mean."

"Actually," said a familiar, almost warm voice, "they say exactly what they mean."

Faith turned, an accusatory look on her face. "You snuck up on me!" she said to Giles, who had indeed managed to move up behind them without being noticed.

Giles smiled. "It wasn't too hard. Hello Faith, Xander," he nodded his head to both in turn, and Xander stood up, holding the book open in front of him.

"What does lemniscate mean?" asked Faith quickly.

"It's a curve, a figure eight shaped curve, I believe. The prophecy you're referring to is about the moon changing directions two or three times, Xander—and it was fulfilled in 92."

Xander closed the tome grumpily. "We should start marking fulfilled prophecies in red ink," he said. "So, we do a handshake, right? Cause we're manly."

"Indeed." Giles offered his hand, and Xander shook it quickly.

"Does that make us hug material?" asked Faith a little too brightly, her eyes sparkling with what could only be interpreted as an evil glint.

"No," said Giles with a shudder. "And you don't even get a handshake, now. Can we go?"

Faith smirked, happy in her ability to disquiet Giles. "Aw, come on, just a small hug? I promise not to cop a feel this time."

"Let's talk about Spike," said Giles forcefully. "He's about, I take it? Here in Boston?"

"Yes, and a resounding yes," said Xander. "First I was happy to see him, then I was disturbed, and then I was angry. Scared showed up at last, however, showing my sanity is not all gone."

Giles nodded. "We'd better go back to your apartment," he said grimly. "There's a lot to talk about."

When they reached the car Xander took the backseat, ensconcing Giles in the passenger seat, with his lone suitcase beside Xander. "So," said Faith. "This is the part where you talk at great length."

Giles sighed, rubbing his eyes behind his glasses. "It started just after we closed the Hellmouth," he admitted. "I began getting reports that Angel...was working for an unspeakably evil organization. I went to Buffy immediately. At first we were able to deny it, to rationalize it, but then we received reports that he was gathering others to him. Vampires. At first it was just Harmony, but then there was...there was another odd report."

"And you're sure it was Angel, not Angelus?" asked Faith.

"Yes." Said Giles. "He had a problem, a Slayer who'd gone insane. We sent Andrew to spy on him. And his organization. Andrew's report..."

"Why Andrew?" asked Faith.

"Because Andrew's not someone Angel knows," said Giles. "Andrew could spy without him realizing anything was off. And Andrew's surprisingly good at spying. He said that Angel was definitely, um, in possession of his soul. And he told us that Spike had been resurrected. But Andrew also reported that they were deeply, deeply involved in the darkest magic, the darkest intrigues... it was disturbing."

"And that's enough to turn you against him? Half-formed reports of involvement in unnamed evil?" asked Faith, still holding on to her loyalty to Angel. Giles glanced at her, a sympathetic look on his face.

"No. We thought perhaps that it was a trick—that he might be trying to destroy them from the inside. But then things started happening. Strange things."

"Strange?" asked Faith.

"You are familiar with the Old Ones?" asked Giles.

"Not a bit," said Xander.

"Pure demons that roamed the earth before mankind," said Giles flatly. "Imprisoned. They would be the death of all we knew, if they were released, but they were trapped, sealed away, guarded. Until Angel freed one."

"Angel freed one?" demanded Faith, more than a little shocked. Even though she'd thought that she couldn't be shocked, not any more.

"At the cost of the life of one of his friends," said Giles grimly. "Then he allied with the creature—an ancient evil of unbelievable power. Together with Spike and this ancient evil, and all the allies he had gathered, they struck out. I don't know how many died, but I do know that a senator who was considered by many to be a great hope for America died. I know that he killed the Guardian of the Well of Souls—the one Champion of goodness who might yet have stopped what he was doing. And he joined a circle of darkness, a secret society of evil. I have tried to see what he might have been doing, to see some goodness—but it's all very dark, and very damning."

Xander and Faith were silent, trying to absorb all this. "That's all?" asked Faith quietly.

"Even before this there were signs." Said Giles. "I've heard that he destroyed something...I'm not clear what...that would have led to world peace. That he let Darla and Drusilla kill a roomful of humans. All this long before he joined the evil organization."

"And all as Angel, not Angelus." sighed Faith. "My god."

"Indeed," said Giles. "It was nearly five months ago that Spike came to Italy, searching out Buffy. He was raving, told her that Angel was dead, and that he needed her help. She sheltered him for a few days, gave him succor—until he told her his plan."

"Break into hell?" guessed Faith.

"He wanted to go to Cleveland and open the Hellmouth," sighed Giles. "At first she tried reasoning with him, but he just became more incoherent. Then when the Immortal returned, he became even more unreasonable."

Faith nodded. "Great," she muttered. "Ex meets present boyfriend. Was there a fight?"

"No," said Giles. "Spike ran off. We increased the Slayer presence on the Hellmouth in Cleveland, but...well, we didn't hear anything about Spike until your call."

"When will Buffy get here?" asked Faith.

"Tomorrow or the day after," said Giles. "Could you find their headquarters again?"

Faith shook her head, trying in vain to concentrate on her driving. "No," she said.

"I could," said Xander. Faith almost glanced at him in surprise. "I was watching the landscape pretty closely. There were a lot of soldiers—and more. There was somebody there, a kid who called himself Connor. Spike called him the Destroyer."

"Yet another of Angel's associations that we'd worried about," said Giles. "Apparently some form of dimensional traveler who wreaked havoc throughout LA—and who Angel associated with."

Faith let out a long breath, remembering the way he had hit her. "He could fight like nothing I've ever fought," she said. "Like Buffy. No, harder than Buffy. Stronger. Quicker. And he said Drusilla was there."

Giles took a deep breath. "Spike...it has been very hard on Buffy, and myself. She, especially, trusted him. But the situation has been very difficult." He swallowed. "I don't think she'll be able to kill Spike, if it comes to that."

"I can," growled Faith, anger in her voice.

--

Riley moved through the dark underground tunnels purposefully, counting the doors as he went by. There was no markings on them to identify the occupants, but he knew Connor's was the fifth from the start.

As he reached the fifth he halted and took a deep breath, then knocked. "Hello?" said a muffled voice from within.

"It's Finn," said Riley shortly. Connor opened the door, smiling, as usual.

"Hey," said Connor, and for a minute he looked so much like just another well-adjusted teenager that Riley almost forgot to be afraid of him.

Riley handed the sheaf of papers he had carried in his left hand to Connor. "They're coming from all over the world," he said tightly. "Slayers, Watchers, even the occasional witch."

Connor stared at the list, sitting down on his bed. "I take it this is the part where we scream like girls and run for our lives?" he finally said.

Riley sighed, sitting beside the Destroyer. "Spike interrogated Drusilla again, and said that he was able to make some sense of the conversation. I listened to a tape, and it didn't seem altogether coherent to me. But under the circumstances..."

"Where does he want to go?" asked Connor.

"It'll be hard to stay ahead of them," warned Riley.

"You keep up the operation here," said Connor. "Spike and I will track this lead down."

"This had better be the time," said Riley. "These Slayers will probably crush us if it isn't."

Connor shrugged. "Ah, I doubt they'd kill you."

"They might kill Harmony and Drusilla," said Riley.

Connor's smile wavered, and he sighed. "That's a risk we may have to take," he replied. "Put the vampires under guard, and warm up the stealth chopper."

Riley shook his head. "You have no idea how to find this lead. All Spike knows is that she was in LA when Angel died." He said it in a very frustrated tone of voice.

"All right, we'll take Harmony with us, then," said Connor. "She can track for us. No problem."

--

Dawn climbed up the stairs to the apartment she and Buffy shared with Andrew, her key in hand. To her surprise the door was open, and she hesitated, doing a mental weapons check. Then she stepped inside, glancing around.

"Andrew?" she called out. "Buffy?"

A tall, dark figure stepped out of the dark recesses of the room, giving a half-bow. "Dawn," said a deep, gravelly voice.

"Oh,_ l'Eterno_!" said Dawn, surprised by his presence. "Where's Buffy?"

The Immortal shrugged. "She is packing," he said simply, turning back to the shadows.

"And, and you're lurking," noted Dawn.

He shrugged again. "_Vita eterna_ breeds patience," he said quietly. "She is running off to see the golden-haired William the Bloody."

"Oh," said Dawn, a bit slowly. "Somebody found Spike?"

"_Fede—_Faith, she found your wayward friend," said the Immortal. He gave a slow sigh, turning to Dawn and meeting her gaze with dark brown eyes. "Your sister, she is very special, but when William was here, I felt as if a part of her was with him, not me. And now at the very mention of his name she runs off."

"He was trying to end the world!" said Dawn defensively. "A little preoccupation is a healthy thing!"

"_Fede_ could have taken care of it," dismissed the Immortal. "No, even now I doubt that she will ever return here." He smiled. "But we had a good time, and that is all I ask."

Dawn gazed at him. "You're a real piece of work," she said finally, unable to find any real praise in her heart or mind for the man in front of her. He shrugged again.

"_Vita eterna,_" he excused himself. "It does perhaps breed a larger perspective."

Dawn shook her head. "You can't blame eternity. I've known other long-lived individuals, and they weren't as egotistical as you, _l'Eterno._ Your name, your arrogance, it comes from somewhere else."

He cocked his head at her, tilting it at an odd angle, examining the insult. "Then it is the nature of mankind. _Natura decaduta_, Dawn."

"Fallen nature? _Perdere la grazia di Dio._" He smiled at her familiar usage of Italian, nodding.

"Fallen from grace, then?" he asked. "Perhaps I am. Will you leave with Buffy, or continue here alone?"

"I'll go with Buffy," said Dawn reluctantly. "If Spike is back...well, he was the Big Bad once. Maybe he is again."

_l'Eterno _nodded. "Then this is goodbye." He offered his hand to her. When she took it he swept her hand up, kissing it. "_Arrivederci_."

He swept out theatrically, and Dawn sighed, heading back for the bedrooms. "Buffy?" She called.

"We're over here," said Andrew, from his bedroom, and Dawn quickly moved into his room, shaking her head.

"I just said goodbye to the swelled head. Good lord, Buffy! Whatever possessed you to date him?"

Buffy, sitting on the bed with a book in her hands, glared at Dawn. "Well, for one, he treated me like his '_donna molto bella,' _unlike some men I could name. And for two, I'm not discussing that reason with you. Ever."

Dawn shrugged. "Okay. So we found Spike? Faith spotted him?"

"Spoke to him," said Andrew, chewing thoughtfully on his thumb. "It sounds dangerous."

"_Dea del sesso_, more like," muttered Dawn. Buffy's eyes widened.

"WHAT?!" she demanded.

"Anyway," said Dawn hurriedly. "Do we have tickets yet? I should go get us tickets if we don't."

"We?" said Andrew. "No, no, no. You're staying right here." He put on his best brotherly face. "It's safer for you here."

Dawn glared at him. "And the last time Buffy got a guy to try and take me out of the big Apocalypse-y action, I hit him with a stun-gun and kicked her in the shins. You want in on that, Andrew?"

He wilted. "I did get you a ticket," he squeaked.

Dawn nodded, satisfied. "Good," she said. "I'll go pack." She turned and marched off.

Buffy leaned over to Andrew. "Andrew, does _dea del sesso _mean what I think it means?"

He turned red. "Uh, yes," he said. "Uh, that is, what do you think it means?"

"Never mind," sighed Buffy. "That girl has a dirty mind." She scowled at the door. "So, have we heard back from Tibet yet?"

"Yes," said Andrew, checking the notebook beside him. "Willow said she'd mobilize the remaining forces to London, where they'd stand by waiting for your orders."

Buffy nodded. "I can't believe I'm getting an army of Slayers ready to fight SPIKE!" she moaned. "It seems like just yesterday he was my only anchor—the only one who believed in me. In a house full of Slayers, Watchers and friends, he was the only one I could really talk to."

Andrew nodded. "I was so happy when I saw he was alive," he said. "And then at first it seemed like he was working at cross-purposes to Angel, and I thought we'd found an ally. I came very close to revealing my mission to him, I really did, until Dana got in the way. And then when he showed up here..." He sighed. "I really do look up to Spike." He said in a small voice.

Buffy nodded grimly. "I don't want to kill Spike," she said. "I'd rather chain him up in the basement again." Her eyes were slightly glassy, unshed tears fighting to break free. "I still can't believe..."

"That Angel's gone?" asked Andrew softly. She nodded mutely.

--

Connor glanced to Harmony. "Now, let's hear it," he said grimly.

She sighed, glaring at him. "I'm just here to facilitate communications. I'm not to fight, and if I betray you..." she trailed off, trying to remember. "I always forget this part!" she complained.

"We'll peel your skin off and set you on fire," supplied Spike helpfully.

She groaned, nodding. "Right. That."

"Good," said Connor cheerfully, glancing at the jet that was still being fueled. "Now, let's go find Eve."

--

Translations of Italian used above (although most of it spoke for itself, I hope):

_l'Eterno:_ The Eternal

_Vita Eterna_: Eternal life

_Fede:_ Faith

_Natura decaduta:_ Fallen nature

_Perdere la grazia di Dio: _Fallen from grace

_Arrivederci: _Goodbye

_Donna molto bella: _Goddess

_Dea del sesso_: Sex goddes


	4. Sunrise

Disclaimer: I don't own a thing.

Summary: Post AtS and BtVS, Faith and Xander are approached by a secret government agency. Surprises all around.

Rating: PG-13

Chapter 4: Sunrise

Faith smashed the front door down, revealing the interior of the small elevator. The elevator car wasn't in the shaft, leaving a long, empty shaft, with a steel cable in the middle.

Xander, behind her, sighed. "Great," he said. "I can never get an elevator."

"Wait here," said Faith, jumping forward and grabbing the wire.

As she slowly descended hand over hand, she wondered just what she was going to do when it came time to fight three vampires, at least two of them serious threats, and the Destroyer. She was pretty sure those kinds of odds weren't what most people called favorable, or even half-decent.

As she neared the bottom she let go, landing on top of the elevator car. She found the hatch on top fairly easily, even in the dark, and tore it off, dropping herself lightly into the empty car.

She hit the top bottom and the elevator began ascending, giving her a moment to check her hands. The leather gloves she was wearing to match her leather jacket had protected her hands pretty well, and she only had one or two small cuts. She bound them quickly, knowing that vampires could smell blood so well it would be dangerous to go into combat with any kind of wounds.

Thanks to that vampire in Prague, that was a mistake she wouldn't be making again.

When she reached the top the doors opened and Xander climbed in slowly. "Going down," he said nervously, hitting the button.

Faith sighed. "Why are you coming along?" she asked for the fifth time.

"Because I know Riley, and I'm kind of hoping he'll listen to reason," replied Xander. "Okay, that sounded totally naïve and kind of stupid."

Faith shrugged. "Not so stupid," she said, glancing around the small elevator. "They've probably figured out we're coming down, and have guns waiting for us at the bottom."

"Way to make me feel confident here," muttered Xander. "Remind me again why we're doing this before Buffy and the rest of the Slayers arrive?"

Faith shrugged. "We're here," she said simply.

"You mean you want to protect Buffy and stake Spike before she has to," said Xander nervously. "You do know he killed two Slayers before, right? I mean, seriously...and Drusilla, she killed Kendra! This is like Slayer-killer central down here!"

Faith shrugged again, glaring at Xander. For once she let the cool reserve she tried to keep between them slip a little, feeling some real anger towards him. "Look, this is what it is, okay?" she asked him, her voice rising. "We're going to kick a little butt, take some names, and they better not try to stop us, okay?"

He nodded unhappily. "I know," he said. "I just...worry."

She felt her temper deflate, and felt a little more anger arise from that. What right did he have to be right, to take the high ground? He made her feel about two feet tall every time he did that, and she hated it.

She really, really hated Xander at times like this.

The doors opened, revealing two soldiers with guns leveled.

"Welcome back," said Riley, standing at the end of the hallway. "Spike said you might come back like this—and he was right, as usual." There was a slight note of bitterness in his voice, and Xander recalled all too well that Spike had been there when Riley's relationship with Buffy had unraveled.

"Sorry," said Xander. "But we learned a few things about Spike—about the things he's been doing since Sunnydale."

Riley shrugged. "You mean, the time he spent hanging out with Angel?"

"The people he killed!" shouted Xander. "He turned on us, Riley!" Faith turned to Xander in surprise, shocked by his outburst. "He's a vampire; that's what they do! He and Angel weren't fighting the good fight in LA, Riley, they were killing people! They brought an ancient demon, a force of evil, to life!"

Riley shook his head. "That's low, Xander."

"It's true," said Faith. "When we told Giles Spike was here, he came running. Would you like to talk to him?"

Riley frowned. "He summoned an ancient demon?" he said, his voice unsure for the first time.

"And how," said Xander, relieved.

Riley shook his head. "That's...immaterial. He's already been a great help to us."

"Where's Spike?" asked Faith.

"Why do you ask?" said Riley defensively. He then paused, taking a second to soak up the irony of his defending Spike. "That is, why don't you explain to me just what you want, and I'll see if I can't give it to you."

"He's going to try to end the world again," said Faith. "You see it, don't you? Open a portal into hell—that's what all the badguys do! It's what the hellmouth was all about. It's what Sunnydale was all about. The First Evil just did what everybody before him had tried!"

Riley stared. "What? First what?" he asked.

"Long story," said Xander. "But think about it. A portal into hell—that's not something good guys do. It's going to unleash hell on earth, letting more demons than you can imagine come to the ultimate buffet—Earth."

Riley scowled. "Okay, that's a pretty good spin on what he said, but he said he wants to kill the demons there."

"It's impossible," said Xander. "The ones here are the tiny three inch Joes. The ones there are the full-sized original models."

"You just used GI Joes to make a serious point," sighed Faith, covering her face.

--

Connor sat back in his seat, leaning his head against the top. Spike, who was driving, glancing over at him and made a snorting noise, then went back to watching the road.

"If she can get us into hell, do we wait for the soldiers to come with their guns before we go in?" asked Connor.

"Of course not," said Spike. "They've been compromised. Faith and the whelp'll have the whole Sunnydale crew and all those Slayers on the way by now. The soldiers'll fold, and probably they'll stake Dru." He frowned at the thought, and then shook his head. "S why we brought Harm with us."

"Thanks a lot," muttered Harmony.

"We're going to need her for phase two," continued Spike, as if she hadn't spoken at all. "Wouldn't do to lose her."

"And if this lead doesn't pan out?" asked Connor, worried. "What do we do then?"

Spike sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "Then we're well and truly screwed," he replied. "If this doesn't work out then we go back to Buffy, and try to talk her into it. Just one more time."

"And if she still doesn't go for it?" asked Connor.

Spike was silent for a long moment. "Maybe this isn't something we can do," he said finally. "I mean, I'd like to do it, but maybe this just isn't something we can do."

Connor shook his head. "Geez. You're ready to give up?"

"The soldier-boys were our last contact. Now the Sunnydale crew will come in and gripe about how I fought beside Angel and Illyria and even Wes." Spike was silent a moment, remembering the dead. "And they're all dead, can't defend themselves, can they? Dead."

Connor shifted in his seat uneasily. "Spike," he said, his tone a warning.

"I'm not going crazy again!" protested Spike. "Been there." He shuddered, a full-bodied shiver that jerked the steering wheel, making the tires squeal. Harmony let out a squeal of surprise, the tone very near that the tires made. "I just need to stop," he whispered. "Stop and take a break. Sleep for a thousand years."

"You've been pushing yourself," acknowledged Connor. "But the worst is yet to come."

Spike chuckled. "Patience, grasshopper," he said roughly. "Cliché center here. Been there. Apocalypse brewing—Harm, do you smell anything yet?!" He roared the last words.

"Eep! Yes! I smell Eve!" said Harmony.

"Good." Spike slammed the brakes on, bringing the car into a skidding stop. Harmony let out another shriek. "Connor, you have the scent?"

Connor shook his head, frustrated. "Too many here. I wish I'd met her—that would make it easier."

Spike growled, rubbing his own nose. "Come on, Harm. Take us to her."

Harmony opened the car door. "God, you drive worse than you—!"

Spike cut her off with a glare, glancing at Connor, who got out of the car uncertainly, looking around.

"I know this place," said Connor. "Back from the days when I was..."

"And what if she has another demon army waiting for you?" asked Harmony. "Think about that, Spike! Demon armies, dragons, all sorts of nasties!"

"Eve isn't part of Wolfram and Hart, not anymore," said Spike. "They think she betrayed them. Especially since her cuddly puppy Lindsey helped finish off the Circle of the Black Thorn."

Connor frowned uncertainly. "But Lorne killed him, didn't he?"

"Yeah," said Spike. "Go figure."

Harmony led them down the LA street, following the scent. "This is nuts!" she said.

Privately, Connor agreed with her. For all his protestations that he was sane, Spike had been over the edge ever since Angel died. Ever since Buffy had refused to help him, telling him that she thought he and Angel had been fighting against goodness and right.

His babble about saving the baby had only made things worse, there.

But even if Spike was a little mad, Connor was standing by him in this. Not because he thought Spike needed a friend—good Lord, that sounded so touchy-feely his stomach turned over—but because Connor understood all too well the odds the vampire was up against.

His parents—the ones he thought of as real, even if they weren't—thought he was off in college. He felt bad, lying to them like this.

But he had a responsibility to finish what his father had started. It was a long shot, but Spike, in his mad, mad way, had come up with a plan to destroy the Senior Partners, the people who'd killed Angel.

The people who had destroyed Angel, really.

Then Connor felt the sixth sense he was only marginally aware of most the time tingling, and knew they were in trouble again.

Connor swallowed, glancing at the two blondes in front of him. "We have a problem," he reported grimly.

"What?" asked Spike roughly.

Connor nodded over his shoulder at the two men wearing long, tan dusters. Both of them held crossbows, and they were grinning, an evil set of grins. They looked like rejects from a bad movie, too cheesy to be real vampire hunters, and too lucky to be anything but Wolfram and Hart.

Spike turned around, growling low in his chest. "You lot better work for Eve," he said, the threat in his voice very clear. "If you were to be, say, flunkies for Wolfram and Hart—well, none of us here have any problems hurting humans, do we?"

"Not a bit," said Connor. "As our past history more than proves."

"Ain't it neat?" asked Spike.

"I can smell Eve on them," said Harmony nervously. "Um, don't point those things at me, guys. Perfectly harmless vampire here."

"The boss lady said you might show, and she said we could have you if you did," said the first, a tall blonde also wearing a fedora. He fired the crossbow.

Spike caught the bolt in mid-air, a movement of muscles that cracked in the night air, a coiling motion like a snake striking, only more graceful. "Nice try, chuckles. Do you know exactly who we are?"

The other fired quickly at Harmony. Connor caught the bolt, his arm flicking out. "I don't think they do," he said firmly.

"Holy crap!" exclaimed the second man. "Nobody's that fast! Nobody!"

Connor ran forward, jumping into the air. As they turned to run he landed in front of them, spinning to face them.

"You are out of your league." He said it quietly, without rancor. "Take us to Eve, now, or we'll tear your guts out and paint the street with them."

Spike, suddenly behind the two gaping mercenaries, growling in assent. Harmony, behind him, made a gagging noise. "That's just gross!" she complained.

Spike sighed, rolling his eyes. "You're a vampire. You like those things, remember?"

"Yeah, but it's messy!" complained Harmony. "Even...Oh, poo."

It didn't take a whole lot of convincing to get the two mercenaries, who Spike immediately started calling Miney and Mo, to take them to Eve. As they led the way up the narrow staircase in a tenement building, Connor took the lead, standing behind the two crossbow-toting soldiers.

"Crossbows can be useful," Harmony conceded. "But Angel could do that arrow-grabbing thing, and so you've got to figure that anybody who's any good can do that too."

"I've never tried it before," admitted Connor. "I had no idea I was that quick. I wouldn't even have tried, except Spike did it."

"First time for me too," admitted Spike. "Seemed better than being skewered."

"So I might have been killed?" asked Harmony, clearly unhappy with the thought.

"Yeah, more or less," said Spike. "So sorry about that, Harm. Are we there yet?"

"And are there more of you?" asked Connor.

The mercenary in front of him swallowed hard. "Number 307, and there's nobody else. We're, uh..."

"Yeah, yeah." Spike shoved him against the door. "Oh, Lucy, we're home!" he called, kicking the door open, sending the mercenary sprawling into the room. Eve, sitting at a computer, shrieked, and leapt for a crossbow in the corner.

Connor beat her there with a long leap, smashing it. "Ah ah ah!" he cautioned her, waving a finger in her face. "Let's all play nice!"

The tall, lanky brunette swallowed hard, her wide, bright brown eyes showing signs of panic already. She backed away, staring at Spike. "I thought you were dead," she said. "Oh god."

"Then what were Miney and Mo for?" asked Spike curiously, pushing the other mercenary into the room. "They were armed for vampire, after all."

She shrugged. "I didn't really believe it when I heard Angel was dead," she admitted. "I mean, a guy like that—you don't really believe he can be killed, do you?"

"I didn't," said Spike. "I mean, trust me, I have tried, in the past. And I couldn't do it. No, it took some major demons from hell to do it. Speaking of which, I hear you could perhaps take us there."

"Where?" asked Eve.

"Hell," said Spike, pushing forward and invading her personal space. "I hear that as the personal creation of the Senior Partners, and former conduit of their powers, you have the power to make visits to your 'parents.'"

"And we're thinking now might be a good time," suggested Connor.

Eve stared at them. "You're nuts," she said finally. "Completely nuts. Don't you know they'll kill you like they killed him? Don't you know that these people will leave you nothing?" Her eyes flashed, and the words on the tip of her tongue remained unspoken.

"Like we left you nothing?" asked Spike. "Like we took your precious pookie away from you? Go on, what have you got to lose, giving us a one-way ticket to hell, eh?"

She scowled at him. "You're insane," she noted.

"No, I'm not!" howled Spike. "Why does everybody think I'm insane? I've never been saner!" He moved even closer to her.

"This is dark magic!" she protested. "I thought you were supposed to be some kind of champion!"

Spike grinned, a forlorn, evil grin. "Ask Connor, pet," he advised.

Connor nodded, the tousled hair bouncing. "This isn't just about revenge, you know," he said. "It's about stopping them in a way that dad always wanted to—but couldn't. You of all people should know how much he really wanted to get to them, but couldn't. Now, this is about finishing his mission for him." _And so much more,_ he didn't add.

The sharp planes of Spike's face were tilted in anger. "Dark magic, love? We don't care. One way ticket? We don't care. Now, you're going to open that door, or I'm going to kill you. It's as simple as that."

Eve deflated slightly. "You killed Lindsey," she said quietly.

Spike shrugged. "He was evil. You had to know it was coming."

"You took away the one man I ever loved!" Eve shouted at him.

Spike grinned. "Bit of melodrama there, ey? Get over it. The Senior Partners...if you believe they can kill us, then you believe this is justice. And if we kill them—they were the ones who corrupted Lindsey, you know. Led him down the path that ended with him dead. They're as responsible as us. You want vengeance? Get me on the same plane of existence as them. One of us will die, and either way, won't that make you happier?"

--

Riley finished listening to Giles and Xander, and sighed, rubbing his eyes. "I never did trust Spike fully," he finally said. "We needed him, however, to make this program work, and I kept him pretty well contained."

Faith snorted, standing by the door and watching the soldiers all around, keeping her eyes on their all-too-deadly guns. "And the fact that he brought the **DESTROYER** into the mix didn't bother you?" she asked.

Riley shrugged. "Connor's a good kid. Good parents," he said apologetically. "I did trust him. Maybe I shouldn't have. I'm sorry."

"Trusting Spike is always the big mistake," said Xander, a bit of venom in his voice.

"Fortunately, as I said, I didn't," replied Riley. "We have a tracker on Spike. I can take you right to him."

Faith smirked. "Wicked," she said.

"There's one other thing," said Giles. "Drusilla. I believe you have her?"

"I can have her staked with just a word," said Riley.

"No," said Giles. "Her visions—they always gave Angelus an edge, being able to see the future. Spike sought the same edge. If we could interpret her visions, her babble, perhaps we could use it as they did."

Faith snorted. "Using a vampire. The new Watchers are just like the Old ones. I say we just stake it."

Xander considered it. "Drusilla is pretty loopy," he told Faith. "If there's any vampire we could use, it would be her. I'm kind of on the fence on this one."

Faith sighed. "Any other little surprises we should know about?"

Riley shook his head. "We tried to keep him from developing any...surprises."

A soldier stepped into the room. "The other Slayer is here, Commander," he told Riley.

"Buffy?" said Riley, surprised. "Send her in, immediately."

Buffy entered, Dawn at her side, before the soldier could move. "—of my way!" she finished snapped, striding in. "Faith. Riley. Xander. Giles." She took in all the familiar faces. "Wow." The angry expression on her face melted away. "Hey, uh, is this where we talk about Spike?"

"Buffy," said Riley, smiling and standing. Xander stood too.

"We have a tracker on Spike!" he blurted out. "And Drusilla's locked up here somewhere."

"Oh," said Buffy. "Um. Hi, Riley. How's Sam?"

"Good, good," said Riley. "I can have a team on him in ..." He stopped, touching his ear. "Sorry, radio. What? Crossbows? They can do that? Yes? WHAT?" He glanced back at Giles. "They're casting a spell now, and Hartney thinks he can stop them. Except...Connor is pretty hard to stop."

"Who's Connor?" asked Dawn.

"The Destroyer," said Faith grimly. "We've got to get there, now. Maybe two Slayers could stop them."

"I can have you there in an hour," said Riley. "Which, from coast to coast, that's actually a pretty unsafe speed you'll be traveling at."

"No complaints here," said Buffy. "Let's go."

As they filed out Xander hesitated, glancing to Riley. "Thanks," he said finally.

"I've always tried to fight for the right thing," said Riley. "I just can't believe that Spike...again!...nearly turned me around. Last time it wasn't until I met Sam that I got my head screwed on straight again. I forgot how easy it is for him to manipulate. How...we should go."

Xander nodded, relieved that they had sorted it out.

He kind of hoped they wouldn't have to stake Spike. Despite his undying hatred for the bleached wonder, Spike had saved the world more than once. And in doing so had earned some respect from Xander.

Respect he was blowing every minute he tried to end the world.

"It comes down to it, if Buffy can't do it, somebody has to put Spike down," said Xander grimly.

Riley nodded. "I'm carrying a single-shot stake launcher," he said shortly. "It looks like a baton, just a night-stick, but it can take down a vampire. It's faster than any crossbow ever made, and it should give me an edge."

"Great!" said Xander.

"Just one problem," said Riley gloomily. "Spike knows about it. We used it against Drusilla's minions—I did, that is—and he saw me."

Xander shrugged. "So long as it isn't up to Buffy, that's all," he said.


	5. Offspring

Disclaimer: I don't own a thing.

Summary: Post AtS and BtVS, Faith and Xander are approached by a secret government agency. Surprises all around.

Rating: PG-13

Chapter 5: Offspring

Spike and Connor watched carefully as Eve painted the pentagram on the floor of her apartment. Harmony, standing by them uneasily, made a derisive noise under her breath.

Spike glanced to her. "You don't have to stay for the fighting," he said, probably the kindest words he'd ever said to her.

"What?" she said, uncertain he really meant it.

"Just get us into hell, and then you can go run away, find some corner of the world." He frowned at her. "Just...don't ever get caught by me, or the Slayers, all right? We'd have to kill you then." She stared at him. "You haven't earned a get out of jail free card, but you've earned a chance to run, all right?"

She smiled, accepting this, the only bit of genuine attention he'd ever given her. "Thanks," she said. She then began to say something else, something that had the potential to utterly ruin the moment, but Spike cut her off with a shake of his head, knowing all too well what she was likely to say next.

Connor cleared his throat. "I'm picking up some radio chatter on Riley's headset," he said.

Spike smiled. "Terrific. Are they going to try to stop us? I look forward to that."

"No, they're waiting for Riley. He's bringing, uh, specialists."

Spike's face fell. "Oh, no," he said blankly.

"My arch nemesis!" squealed Harmony, quicker on the uptake than most people would have thought.

"Yeah, the bloody Slayer is coming to town," muttered Spike. "Probably bringing Faith, and possibly a whole cadre of Slayers. We're so dead."

Connor sighed, reaching into one of the cargo pockets on his pants and bringing out a wallet. He began thumbing through it. "Still have the cell phone?" he asked Spike. Spike fished it out of a pocket in his duster reluctantly, and Connor took it, finding the card he was looking for in the wallet.

He dialed the number carefully. "Hello?" he said, a little trepidation in his voice. "Hi, yes, it's Connor."

"I don't believe we're doing this," sighed Spike.

"No, we're about to open a doorway into hell," said Connor. "Yes, sure. Of course we'll be careful! We have a problem. Yes, they're on their way up to stop us. No, I don't see—well, yes, okay. Give my best to your mom. Thanks." He turned off the phone. "Well, that's it, I've set it in motion."

Spike took out his lighter, playing with it. "We don't have any allies," he noted. "That bloody nit you just called will probably tell the Slayers everything, including our little hideaway."

"You can't really blame Lorne for that," said Connor, a bit defensively. "He lost a lot in the fight. He wouldn't even be helping us if you hadn't threatened him!"

Spike sighed. "It's just as well," he said, his voice dripping with moroseness. "This is suicide. Angel would kill me if he could see what I'd dragged you into."

"Hey, Spike, lighten up." Connor punched Spike's arm. "I feel like I could actually take Angelus, right now."

Spike sighed, a happy smile curving around his face at a happy memory. "Yeah, that was fun," he admitted, thinking of the moment so long ago when he'd betrayed Angelus in order by allying with Buffy. The smile vanished. "Business. We're going to finish this. Harmony, are you ready?"

"Oh, as always," said Harmony nervously. "I just hope I'm evil enough for this. It'd really suck if they won't let me in because I spent all my time white-hatting with you."

"You'll be fine. No soul," said Spike. "All the good deeds in the world can't change you if you've got no soul. Trust me on this one."

Harmony made a face. "You soul-having vampires are pretty pushy about that whole soul thing, you know," she noted.

Spike carefully adjusted his forearms. "You have the weapons?" he asked Connor. Connor nodded to a duffel bag in the corner. "Good. If the Slayers show, we'll just hold them off till we can make the jump."

Eve looked up from her work. "Slayers?" she asked nervously.

"Not to worry," said Spike. "Being human, they'll just rough you up. Me, on the other hand, if you should happen not to finish that spell before they show, I'll do far more than just rough you up, eh?"

She went back to work grumpily, scowling at the pentagram.

--

Dawn leaned back against the hard metal seat, trying to make eye contact with Xander. "Hey, earth to Xander. Are you in there?"

He shook his head, coming out of the half-daze he had sunk into. "Sorry, Dawn, was I roaming? Bad, bad Xander."

"Feels a little weird to be heading out against Spike, doesn't it?" asked Dawn. "I mean, you never even liked him, and I can tell its wigging you out, too."

Xander made a face. "Do we have to talk about the bleached wonder?" he asked plaintively.

"I think we do," said Dawn. "Why do you think he's doing this?"

Xander shrugged, looking away. Faith, sitting beside Xander, poked him. "Ow!" he said, rubbing his shoulder where her finger had hit him. "Ordinary mortal here, no Slayer healing powers!" he reminded her loudly, scowling at her.

She scowled back. "Dawn's right. He has a soul, he was a good guy. Why's he trying to do this?"

Dawn smiled, glad somebody else was listening to her. She glanced back to the other side of her, out the small window at the clouds speeding by under them. Buffy, sitting behind her with Giles, leaned forward into the aisle.

"Maybe," said Buffy quietly, "he's more insane than evil."

The others all considered it, eyes wide. Riley, sitting opposite Buffy and Giles, behind Faith and Xander, shook his head. "He's not that crazy," he supplied helpfully. "He's a little rambling, and maybe he sounds crazy, but he's got it together."

Xander shook his head, glancing back at the tall soldier. "Except that, of course, you're basing that opinion on a faulty assumption."

"What?" said Riley.

"Spike," said Xander. "You're assuming he thinks somewhat like a human. But he doesn't."

Dawn scoffed. "Of course he does!" she dismissed.

"No, he doesn't," said Buffy thoughtfully. "He's so alive sometimes that we forget, but he is a vampire, with all the weaknesses vampires have."

"Like megalomania?" said Dawn, still dismissively. "He's different. He proved that time and time again—he got a soul, remember? That's not something a vampire can just do, is it? We forget just how different he is. Which is why I'm asking, why is he doing this? He fought to keep the mouth of hell closed, right alongside everybody else here! Sorry, Riley, long story. But he did it! He fought! Why did he join the other side?"

"Why did Angel?" asked Buffy, her voice low and thoughtful.

"Exactly!" said Dawn triumphantly. Faith was nodding.

"Angel wouldn't have," she said. "I mean, I know we know what he did, but I can't believe it!"

Giles cleared his throat, putting a hand on the back of Dawn's chair. "I think that perhaps there is a question here that needs resolving. Perhaps one of them might break, but both? And why? You're right, Dawn, that we do need to understand this better."

"We're not talking about mind control," said Xander finally.

"Why not?" asked Faith.

"Because..." Xander stopped to think about it. "Uh, because I've never seen Spike be controlled. Except for the First. And I've never seen Angel be controlled...except for the First. Hey, the First is dead, right?"

"Wrong," said Giles, frowning. "We couldn't destroy the First, only its army. This could be the First."

"So we chain him up?" asked Dawn hopefully.

"If we can," said Faith cautiously. "There's this Destroyer, too."

"He looked like a kid," said Xander, remembering the boy.

"And he didn't set off any alarms," said Faith. "I mean, no tingles, no buzzing, nothing. Nada. Just, boom. He hit like...well, harder than anything I've ever felt. And the way he fought—it was like..." She trailed off as it hit her.

"What?" said Dawn, impatient.

"He fought just like Angel!" said Faith, frowning. "Or Angelus. Both of them. The same moves, the same way of moving, the same speed. Exactly like him."

--

Connor carefully laced his fingers together, gazing up at the portal in front of them as it grew and began to flicker, a light show in its own right. "That's about perfect," he said.

Eve scrambled back from the portal. "It's a hole in reality!" she snapped. "And you do realize that the Senior Partners aren't in Quortoth, right?"

"What, they aren't?" asked Harmony.

"Nope," said Connor, his voice steady. "That's phase three. We figured you were better off not knowing that part."

"Better off? Say no more, I'm just shutting right up. Zip. I do my part, right?"

"Right," said Spike.

A huge demon stepped through the portal, a black demon with red horns jutting off his head, and long talons decorating his arms. "Who would enter my realm?" he boomed.

"Not me!" said Eve, backing away.

"Oh, it's me! Me!" said Harmony, waving her hand like a kid trying to get the teacher's attention.

The demon frowned at her. "What? Oh, come on, kid! This is a serious gig. I mean, it takes at least a level three hell clearance to open this portal, and you? If you have the lowest level, I'd be surprised. Are you just fooling around?"

Harmony blinked. "No. Of course not. I have my credentials here."

He glanced around, glaring at Spike and Connor. "No, I mean seriously. What is this? Summon a demon, get your whole D & D clan to watch?"

"Hey!" said Spike. Connor glanced at him, smirking.

"Hey!" said Harmony. "I'm a very important vampire, I'll have you know. This is just my...retinue. They're my minions."

Spike's face reflected how much he would have liked to have punched Harmony for using that word. Connor's face also fell. But the demon just shook his head with a sigh.

"Man, back in the day I used to get respect!" he said, his tone despairing. "Proper chantings, virgin sacrifices—now it's down to Blonde-blonde-ella and her 'minions.' Great, yeah, you can come in. But I warn you, there's a price."

Harmony nodded eagerly. "Yeah, okay, fine! Can we get done!"

The door to the tenement, already off the hinges, was kicked to the floor. Spike turned, an angry look on his face, and was hit hard. A ringing filled Connor's ears, and he gasped, stumbling.

The soldier who'd shot Spike held a gun identical to the one Riley had threatened Faith with. "All right, let's just cool down," he said softly. Another soldier behind him, holding a similar weapon, nodded, touching his ear.

"We're in. There's a portal, and a demon." He fired at the demon, who just scowled at him in response.

"See what I'm talkin about?" asked the demon. He shook his bristling head. "No respect. Everybody ready to rumble?"

The soldiers stared at him uncertainly, then began firing. The demon leapt forward, skewering them both instantly as he landed, tossing their bodies aside with a full-bodied shiver.

"That's just pathetic," he said morosely. "In the old days at least they'd send a Slayer or something to try to close a tear in the fabric of reality!"

Faith and Buffy attacked then, diving at him from opposite sides, using swords to skewer him. He gasped at the impact, glancing at them.

"Two do ya?" asked Faith as nonchalantly as she could, planting a foot on his chest and pulling the sword free. The demon fell down, Buffy's sword still in him.

"'Two do ya?'" asked Buffy. "What is that? I mean, it's not even a pun. Barely even a quip!"

Faith shrugged. "I work with what I've got." She turned to face Harmony, whose mouth was hanging wide open.

"Blondie bear!" shrieked Harmony. "They're here!"

Spike wobbled to his feet. "Wot?" he asked groggily. Connor also got up, holding his head.

"Ow, ow, ow!" complained Connor. "Sonic attack! Soldiers! Slayers! What is wrong with you people?"

Spike straightened up, staring at Buffy. "Oh, bollocks," he complained. "You're here to kill me, tearing me apart like you always do." He made a rude, possibly obscene and definitely British hand gesture with two fingers at her. "And you killed the guardian demon. Harm, through the portal, now!"

Harmony stared. "But the demon hadn't finished yet!" she complained.

"Doesn't matter," muttered Spike. "Never matters."

Harmony shook her head, glancing at Eve. "I don't understand!" She wailed.

"There are other gatekeepers," said Connor. "We'll need you to get by them."

Buffy and Faith advanced, shoulder to shoulder. "We're going to close that portal, right now," said Faith. "Before or after we kick your butts, your choice."

"Now that, that was a good quip," said Buffy. "Definitely Slay-worthy."

"Glad I meet your approval, B," replied Faith.

Connor backed up slowly. "Now, I know this looks funny, but we're on the same side, you know."

"Same side?" asked Faith. She noted that Spike was standing, just watching Buffy. He didn't retreat, and his arms were limp at his sides.

Connor sighed, rubbing his ears. "We just want to finish the job Angel started," he said simply.

"The Angel who killed his friends and brought an Old Demon back to life?" asked Buffy tightly.

Spike snapped, whirling into motion. "Stop that!" he roared, moving forward, advancing on Buffy. "You don't know Blue, so don't you judge her! She didn't belong, she was out of place, and all she wanted was a little love! S not her fault Fred died, that was all Knox! You don't know why she stood with us, you don't know what we did, and you don't even know why she died, so don't you spit on her grave!" His face twisted in anger, and Buffy and Faith stopped advancing. He didn't, invading their space and getting in their face. "How dare you judge them?" he hissed.

Buffy lashed out, knocking him across the room. "If Angel wasn't evil, why was he allied with Wolfram and Hart?" she asked. "I spoke to Giles; there was a man who could have stopped the Old One!"

"Drogyn," muttered Spike, picking himself up off the floor. "Mister no-questions-please."

"And Angel killed him, too!" said Buffy. "It doesn't make sense, none of it makes sense! I don't understand it! Was it the First Evil, Spike? Did the First come back?"

Spike laughed, glancing to Connor. "The First is dead, pet. Haven't seen her in a long time."

Connor was scowling. "Spike, what's the First?"

"Ancient evil," said Spike. "Could take on the form of dead people. Including Buffy, although she never did me. Anyway, she drove me mad once."

"And Angel too," said Buffy.

"But she's all pass-throughy and stuff," said Spike. "Hey, let's look around, take a quick inventory of each other, shall we? Connor, the Destroyer."

Connor scowled. "Now, really, that's biased. Nobody but demons call me that."

"That's the other thing," said Buffy, shifting her pose to an offensive one, getting ready to attack. "We never did understand why Angel allied with you."

"Allied?" asked Connor, offended. "Listen to you. You make it sound like he invited me in, like he was nice to me...well, yeah, he was. And for that, I put him in a box and dropped him in the ocean. Welcome to my life, eh?"

"You what?" asked Buffy, shaken. "You did that to Angel?" In her mind she added the accusation, no wonder he went crazy.

"I did more than that," said Connor. "I was ready to kill him. I killed my own daughter for him, did you know that? And Cordelia...wasn't really ever Cordelia. You know something, this conversation is a really creepy recap of how it all went down. But you know what else? After all that, he still loved me enough to give me the happy ending he deserved." Connor carefully clenched both hands into fists. "He taught me, finally, what love and family was all about. And if you think I'm going to forget that just because you can't understand the dark edge he was walking—well, you know, that's tough."

"And I...understood maybe two words of that," said Buffy. "You, Faith?"

"A little more. There was this threat at the end," said Faith.

Spike laughed, a bubbling, insane laugh. "You missed the important part," he said solemnly. "The part where Angel loved the little git." He grabbed Connor's arm. "Don't you see it? The same dour scowl, the same brooding—heaven forbid he ever sings. That'll destroy you, all right, the same way Angel's singing would destroy you. He even fights the same! I know you noticed it." Spike's grin was altogether too happy.

"So, what?" asked Faith. "He stole Angel's soul? Angel's mojo? He killed him?"

"No," said Connor. "Not even close. I don't really like to talk about it, so why don't we just fight?"

Spike nodded thoughtfully. "That sounds like the best plan," he admitted. "Except I do like to talk about it. He's Angel's son, you bints!" He yelled the last sentence at Faith and Buffy. "A magical miracle son, come back to kill his father! How did that last bit go, happy ending?"

"A family," said Connor. "He gave me a family, and a normal life. He sent me away." Connor's scowl deepened. "And then the Senior Partners killed him."

"Destroyed him," added Spike. "Are you getting the picture?"

They were. Faith and Buffy gaped at the boy, amazed by the revelation that now seemed all too sheepishly obvious. Obvious in the sort of way that would never occur to you because it was impossible. "How?" asked Buffy.

"Miracle," said Connor shortly, not bothering to reveal the whole story—Sahjahn, Jasmine, and the manipulations of so much evil that was amazing he had been as well-adjusted as he had been.

Basically, he'd only killed a few people, and only been a little nuts. That was just something a teenage boy deserved, wasn't it?

Faith shook her head. "I met you, I know I did!" she said, frustrated with her memories.

"Yeah, you did," admitted Connor. "Part of that happy ending dad gave me was erasing the memory of me from all his friends."

Faith stared. "Angel wouldn't..." She trailed off, uncomfortable with the denial.

Spike snorted. "Angel would, Angel wouldn't, what do you know about Angel? Condemn him, damn him, but don't ever understand him!"

"I understood him better than you ever will!" said Buffy, angry.

"Then why was I there when he died?" asked Spike. "Where were you? Not there. Not with him." Spike's glower was almost unfriendly, and then it melted away, replaced by a look of frustration. "And now you're here to stop me. I wish it could be different, I wish I could just let you stop me, just go back with you, go back to being your sidekick." He shook his head, sighing. "No, this is more important. I still love you, you know." He glowered at her. "But this is more important than you and me."

Buffy, still angry, let out a little sigh. "Come on, Spike. Just stop trying to do this." She extended a hand to him. "We can help you, Spike."

"No!" he screamed, angry. "It's been months and months since he died! Don't you understand? Doesn't anybody understand? His other face is roaming free, don't you know that?"

Faith stiffened. "Other face? What?" She had been silently moving, trying to get close enough to take Connor out.

Connor turned to face her, grimacing. "We don't have time." He ran for the portal, jumping through it.

Spike glanced over his shoulder at Harmony. "All right, Harm, take a powder." He started running at the portal, jumping into it, Harmony right behind him.

"No!" said Buffy, running forward. As Spike jumped through Eve moved forward, chanting a spell to close the portal. "NO!" yelled Buffy again, cocking a fist to throw a punch at Eve.

"If it's not closed now we'll regret it big-time!" yelled Eve.

"You close it, I'll kill you!" snarled Faith, running for the portal. She jumped through, Buffy on her heels.

Eve finished closing the portal fast. "Oh, thank god!" she moaned as it disappeared.

"Aw, I missed them?" asked a smooth voice from the door. Eve froze, turning to face the tall, dark figure.

"Angel," she said, surprised.

He shook his head, sighing. "Look down," he said, sweeping a hand down at about pelvis height. Her eyes followed his hand. "See the leather pants? Dead give away, right?"

"What?" she asked blankly.

"Not Angel," said the vampire, morphing into game face. "The pesky soul is all gone. Dead. Just Angelus, now." He started forward.


	6. Portals

Disclaimer: I don't own a thing.

Summary: Post AtS and BtVS, Faith and Xander are approached by a secret government agency. Surprises all around.

Rating: PG-13

Chapter 6: Portals

Connor got his bearings, glancing around. "Plain of Dead Things," he muttered, taking a necklace of bones out of his pocket and putting it on around his neck. "That means the Valley of Dying Things is...that way." He swiveled, glancing around.

Harmony and Spike flew through the portal, hitting the strangely colored ground bouncing and rolling. "Argh..." said Spike softly, looking around. "This is hell, isn't it?" The strange colors hurt his eyes.

"It's home," said Connor.

Buffy and Faith flew through the portal, and then it sizzled closed. As the two Slayers rolled to their feet Connor sighed. "I guess I'll have to give the guided tour now," he said.

"No, we're going right back!" said Faith, looking around and squinting.

"There is no way back," said Spike gleefully. "The portal's closed."

"What?" said Buffy, surprised.

Faith finished looking around the completely alien and hostile landscape. "This is Quortoth?" she asked uncertainly.

"This is home," said Connor firmly, pulling out a knife. "The land of the monsters. A place where the only rule is hunt. Or be hunted." He grinned. "This is where I earned the name Destroyer. Welcome to my world."

Spike chuckled, inhaling deeply. "Here we are, Buffy. The end of the world, like I always said. Are you ready to listen now? Or will you just complain about how evil Angel turned out to be?"

"He wasn't!" said Connor, a little angry now. "I mean, you know that, of course. But you two!" He gestured broadly at the two Slayers. "Ah, what's the use."

Faith was still holding her sword, and she carefully pointed at Connor's chest with it. "Angel's son, maybe. But you admitted to trying to kill him, didn't you? Don't push your luck, junior."

He scowled at her. "Push my luck?" He started to step forward, but Spike grabbed his arm.

"Well, we did it, didn't we?" asked Spike. "Big portal into hell. The very thing you were trying to stop us from doing. Feel better for having failed?"

Buffy scowled at him. "Okay, you didn't destroy the world. Got that. But you still haven't explained away any of the things you and Angel did. Or the Destroyer, there."

"Only demons call me that," muttered Connor.

"Ha bloody ha!" roared Spike. "Do we owe you an explanation? Angel didn't. Angel saved the bloody world, pretty often, even if I still think I did it more often, and died, was destroyed, for something you can't even understand! Something you don't even comprehend! Do you think that he died for nothing? For evil, perhaps? No, he found redemption by giving his away, by giving away his shiny new start! Do you think he was no hero? He passed it on to me like that, signing away his soul, because he knew he could do something with it! Something good! And you stand there and whine and complain that he wasn't good enough, that he was evil. Well, get this!" Spike carefully withdrew a piece of paper from his pocket, a folded and crumpled piece of paper. "Sod you, and welcome to hell." He opened the paper carefully. "Which way?"

Connor cocked his head carefully, watching Faith. "That way," he nodded to his right, towards a jagged field of even darker and more twisted color. "The Path of Pain. I don't think they're going to let us go." Spike looked away, at first thinking Connor was referring to demons blocking their path. It took him a moment to understand that Connor meant the Slayers.

Buffy shifted, once again preparing for violence. "Not until we get some sanity out of Spike."

"Sanity?" demanded Spike. "What sanity?" He pulled away from Harmony, who had been moving closer. "Don't touch me!" He screamed, and Buffy flinched back, surprised by his reaction.

"Why do you do that?" asked Faith, keeping her eyes on Connor.

"He does it because he died," replied Connor.

Buffy nodded uncomfortably. "I know," she said. "Burned to ash and then brought back by the same amulet. I know, Spike. Better than anyone else, I know. I died too, remember?"

Spike chuckled. "Right there at the end, you gave me such a pretty lie." His face twisted. "That's why I could never follow you, you know. I wanted to. I even went to Rome with Angel. But you lied." He sniffled, and looked down at his feet.

"He's starting to scare me," noted Faith.

"No," said Buffy. "That last part, that was pretty sane. When he was dying...when the Hellmouth was open, and we were the last two left there, I told him I loved him." Faith couldn't keep her gaze on Connor then, glancing at Buffy in surprise. "He dismissed it as a lie then, and again now." She was watching Spike. "I guess it was a bit of a lie. I certainly didn't love him in the all-consuming way he loved me."

Spike snorted, turning away from them so that they could only see his back, swathed in the black leather duster. "Love, hate, who cares," he muttered. "Connor?"

Connor sighed, still facing Faith. "Look, I know you don't believe me, but there's a heck of a lot of good reasons you should let us go. Besides, it's the only way you'll ever get back to earth!"

Buffy smiled, a predatory smile. "I think we could probably find a way back," she replied.

"It took me nearly sixteen years," replied Connor. "And a tear in reality caused by a very, very dark magic being cast back on earth. Do you think anybody back on earth is trying to rend the very fabric of reality to get you back? Even if they are, that's sixteen years from now."

Faith made a face at him. "Right," she said. "So we just follow the crazy vampire, the ditzy vampire, and the Destroyer into a hell dimension."

Spike turned back around as Harmony prepared to say 'Hey!'

"That's hardly fair, love," he said smoothly. His face was calm, and he looked much more collected. Buffy blinked, surprised by the change. "We have a mission, you know, and you could help us. We're talking about killing some of the demons who infest earth, some of the demons who really drag earth down. Are you really against that?"

Faith scowled at Connor, not willing to take her eyes off him. "And we're just supposed to believe you on that one?"

Harmony didn't hesitate to speak. "Hey, not to throw a wrench into a Mexican standoff, but don't you think we should be a little more concerned about the demon masses here?"

Connor shrugged. "Give me five minutes alone with the demon masses, and we won't have any concerns at all," he said calmly. "Look, Faith, I know you have trust issues going on here, but look at Spike. Just look at him. He's hardly a threat."

Faith's gaze swiveled to Spike, and Connor struck, leaping forward, one foot crashing into her legs, sweeping her to the ground, both hands grabbed her sword and wrenching it away. She smashed into the ground, the world dissolving for a second into stars.

When the world resolved itself again he was holding the sword in a professional grip, a very dangerous grip. "Broadsword," he noted with a smile. "My dad's favorite toy."

--

Eve backed away from Angelus as her hired mercenaries moved in to try and stop him. He lashed out quickly and efficiently, killing them quickly.

"So, where did my darling little Slayers run off to?" he asked, nodding at the sizzling spot on the floor. "And with my wayward son and Childe, no less," he added, sniffing at the air. Then he frowned, shaking his head. "Not to mention my secretary. What is this, some kind of plot? If it is, it's certainly evil." He smiled at her, a smooth smile. "Come on, Eve-y. You can tell me."

"Now, before you kill me, just remember, I'm on your side," said Eve quickly.

"But I've slept with you," pointed out Angelus. "I have something of a track record there. If I didn't at least try to kill you, what would I tell Buffy?"

Eve made a face. "Oh, come on. I could be a great asset to you."

"And you talk like an eighty-year-old accountant with no sense of fun whatsoever," sighed Angelus. "Look, can we just cut to the chase? Emphasis on the cutting." His mouth curved in a smile that was far more entertained than Angel had ever been. And far scarier than Angel had ever been.

Eve smiled shakily. "Quortoth."

"Quortoth?" Angelus was stumped. "Didn't the kid just get out of there? What could possibly possess him to go there? Not that I care, mind you, I just would have liked to have killed them all myself."

Eve's smile was thin, but as genuine as she was. "Angelus, maybe we can make a deal."

Angelus shook his head. "No, not really. I'm just interested in some good old-fashioned chaos and death. I thought I'd start with family, but they don't seem to be interested." A smile played around his face. "I hear that there's a lot more Slayers around these days, just ripe for the picking." He advanced on Eve. "Now, try not to scream." His eyes flashed golden. "That makes it more fun when you do start screaming."

--

Connor stood over the fallen Slayer with the sword, a smirk on his face. "Kind of rocks, doesn't it?" he asked Spike, backing up.

"Eh?" said Spike. "Oh, very good work, you hit a Slayer. Ha bloody ha. Been there, hit her, and I think I may have had more of an impact than you."

"What'd you do next?" asked Connor curiously. "After hitting Faith, I mean."

"Stormed out to find Buffy," replied Spike. "It was kind of a thing. Look, let's just get moving, all right?"

"Don't worry. Time here is different," said Connor. "We won't run out of time here."

"No, it'll be a thousand bloody years here and a few weeks on earth! I know the routine," Spike shot back. "That's not my worry. I'm just bored. Come on."

Connor backed away from Faith, sulking just a little bit. "Well, now that we've established the pecking order here...are we all ready to save the world?"

Buffy lashed out, throwing a leg at his wrist. He absorbed the impact by spinning with the crushing blow, keeping a tight grip on the sword and backhanding her with his off-weapon hand, sending her crashing to the ground.

Faith spun, kicking at his legs. As she kicked his legs out from under him he did a flip in midair, landing on his feet again and backing away from the two Slayers.

"Wow!" he said. "I can see pretty easily why you fell in love with one of those, Spike!"

"Not quite like anything else, are they?" asked Spike smugly. His eyes found Buffy's, and for a second he frozen, standing stock-still, and she could see fear and pain behind his eyes. Then he gave himself a shake and started watching. After a second Connor followed him.

"Hey!" yelped Harmony, realizing she was being left with the Slayers. She turned and ran after the two men striding away.

Faith crawled to her feet. "Well, that went well," she said tightly, glaring at the other Slayer. "You know what, why don't we just, next time, tell each other all about the little background garbage that goes with the territory, huh?"

Buffy clenched her teeth, shaking her head. "I...I'm sorry, Faith. I didn't think it was important."

"It's not," admitted Faith. "I just don't like being left out of the loop."

Buffy frowned at her, and then turned back towards Spike and Connor, who were running off. "Hey!" she yelled after them, and then turned back to Faith. "Why do I get the feeling we're going to end up getting beat up again?"

"Gee, let me think," said Faith, a mischievous gleam in her eye. "Could it be because Spike, the one of those two who's actually killed Slayers, hasn't even bothered joining the fight yet?"

"That's the one," said Buffy with a deep sigh.

They followed the dangerous trio deeper into hell.

--

Xander lay on his hotel bed staring at the ceiling, trying to sleep. It was pretty hard to get to sleep, especially with his Slayer out on a mission.

His Slayer. The thought alone made him want to dissolve into a fit of giggling and shaking, all at once. Whose crazy idea had it been to pair him up with the psycho-Slayer who'd tried to kill him?

Giles, of course. He could hear Giles in the other room, arguing with Dawn about some obscure point of prophecy. The old man was surprisingly adept at making you do things you didn't want to do.

Xander hadn't wanted a Slayer. He especially hadn't wanted Faith. Yet somehow Giles had twisted his arm, speaking of duty, and preserving Xander's special knowledge (what special knowledge?), and somehow Xander had been taken in.

He rubbed his nose, wondering just how difficult it would be to get Faith to kill Giles.

Riley entered the room without knocking. "Hartney reports we have a problem," he said grimly.

Xander sat up quickly. "Problem?" He was dimly aware that Dawn and Giles were silent, and had followed Riley.

"First we lost Buffy and Faith's signals. I mean, I don't mean they went dead—they vanished." Riley's face as he spoke was completely blank. "Then Hartney saw another vampire go in, and now he says the place is empty, except for bodies."

"Another vampire?" asked Xander, his eyes widening. "Does he...was it...?" He was silent for a moment, collecting his thoughts. "I don't suppose there are pictures?" he asked finally.

Riley shrugged. "I've told Hartney to investigate the site, see what they can find...maybe you'd better come have a look at it."

Xander nodded, standing up. He was still fully clothed, a habit he'd fallen into recently, since Faith had no real plans to start knocking on doors just because he might be behind them.

As he followed Riley out he noticed that Giles and Dawn were both very silent. "So," said Dawn quietly. "Buffy vanished. Does that mean...? Did he see?"

Riley shook his head. "There was a portal opened, we know that much," he said grimly. "At this point, we think they went through it. That's all we can think, at this point. But this third vampire...Hartney? What?" He pressed a hand to his ear. "Slow down! I can't...what?" He looked around in shock. "Pull them out! Pull them out!"

Xander could feel the heavy feeling in his gut intensifying, in a way that he wished could have been lunch-related. "We need to get out of here, now."

"We can't run!" said Riley, shocked.

"We have no choice!" snapped Xander. "Do you understand what's out there? I know, you've fought vampires, but any vampire that can take out your commandos is not just another minion, not just another scrapper!"

"Xander is right," said Giles quietly. "This will be a master vampire, no doubt tracking Spike and Connor for some reason, or else in league with them. It will be dangerous, and deadly, and without our Slayers we have nothing capable of fighting it."

Riley looked at them both, a surprised look on his face. "We can handle this!" he insisted.

Dawn shook her head. "Then you go out there and face it," she said. "But you're not a Slayer, and neither are any of us." She glanced at Giles. "It's time to go to plan B," she said, lowering her voice a notch.

"Plan B?" asked Riley, surprised.

"We were going to do this your way," said Giles calmly. "Let your organization deal with it. Now, though, with Buffy and Faith missing and a vampire turning the operation into chaos, it's time for us to step in. I have Slayers ready to move in, some as near as the ruins of Sunnydale."

There was a knock at the hotel door. "Come—" Xander started to say, but Dawn turned and elbowed him in the stomach quickly. "—Oof!" he finished.

There was silence outside the door. "Does that count as an invitation?" asked a familiar, smooth, petulant voice.

"No!" yelled Dawn, leaping for her duffel bag, pulling out a bottle with a stopper in the shape of a cross. "Angelus?"

There was a deep chuckling, and the door opened slowly, pushed open by the vampire. "Ah, little Dawnie." The vampire's face was in shadows, but his hands were held calmly in front of him, crossed. Spots of blood covered them both. "And Riley. This must really be a get-together of people who've slept with the little blonde, isn't it? And the people who wished they had...hello, Rupert, Xander."

Xander glowered at the tall vampire, hating him so much that for a minute it really, really hurt. He backed up to Dawn, reaching into her duffel, searching for more weapons. He came up with a cross. "Get out of here," he hissed at the vampire.

Angelus chuckled. "Get out of here? Oh, Xander, where've you been? I've been killing people all up and down the west coast. Did you miss that?"

"I didn't," said Giles tightly. "People saw you die, you know."

"They saw Angel die," corrected Angelus. "Funny thing, that. I don't fully understand it myself. I woke up a few days after he had died, lying naked on a beach in the dark somewhere. Which is kind of lucky, considering what would have happened to me if the sun had been up when I woke up. Anyway, I've been getting reacquainted with the world, and the destruction I can cause. Death, destruction...it's been fun. But what I really wanted was Buffy. And Spike. Dead. And not necessarily in that order." He pressed a hand against the invisible barrier in front of him. "Now, I've got to run and kill a few Slayers, but you be sure to tell Buffy, when she gets out, that I'm waiting for her. In LA. Okay?"

"We'll send her after you so fast..." muttered Xander.

"She'll come to you," said Giles quietly. "I'm sure she will."

"Good," said Angelus. "By the by, let her know...he moved on."

"What?" asked Xander.

"Angel," smirked the tall vampire. "He moved on." He glanced to Dawn. "And by the by, Dawnie, why don't you try throwing a spell on me? Give me my soul back?" He smirked, loving the way she started to tremble. "Won't work, not any more."

He vanished quickly, turning and stalking away. Xander fumbled an arm around Dawn's shoulders, pulling her closer to him. "It's all right," he said quietly.

She shook him off. "No, it's not!" she yelled, loudly and angrily. "Not even a little!"

--

Buffy and Faith were behind the others when they found what they were looking for, and it took them a minute to catch up.

They stared at the square portal, and the short, green demon talking to Harmony. "What is this?" asked Faith.

"Portal to another hell dimension," muttered Connor. "Just be quiet, here, and try not to kill this one. We sort of need his help."

The demon was droning on while Harmony nodded, pretending to listen. "And you understand that there is no return from the dark dimension, and you forfeit any right to..."

As he went on Buffy turned to Spike, tentatively reaching out for him. "Spike..." she said softly. "I'm sorry."

He shook his head, moving out of her reach with a quick step. "Not now!" he hissed. "This is sort of important!"

The demon hesitated. "Do you mind?" he asked, annoyed. "Where was I?"

"Death," replied Connor. "And something about vampires."

"Oh, yes. No vampires allowed, I'm afraid. And, ah, Destroyer, I'm afraid I can't let you through either."

"What?" said Faith, suddenly completely alert. It was an exclamation, not a real question, and she glared around at Spike. "It was a trick," she growled, understanding. "This is what you meant to do all along!"

Spike stared, not getting it. "What?" he asked, confused.

Buffy got it then, as well. "No vampires allowed, and no Destroyer, leaving Faith. And me." Her voice was cold, the warmth of a moment ago gone. "You want us to go in there and ... and do what, exactly?"

Spike glared at her, and then turned back to the demon. "Why not Connor?" he asked.

"The boys upstairs heard about his little quest to rescue his father. Touching, isn't it?" The demon gave a genuine-sounding sniff. "And so I can't let him in."

"How do you plan to stop me?" asked Connor, his words short and clipped, his eyes narrowed and his chin starting to move up.

"Well, the portal is keyed to destroy you. And any vampires that try to get through—I think the vampire rule is actually out of date, now that Angel is dead," confided the demon. He glanced to Faith, who noticed the sticky phlegm running from his mouth down his chest and shuddered. "Slayer? We've never seen a slayer here before."

Spike shook his head, turning to Connor. "Sorry, old chum," he said quietly. "I tried."

Connor was scowling. "No! No!" His roar of anger held no trace of whine, and quite a bit of promise of bloodshed.

"Nothing I can do about it!" complained the demon.

Spike turned and dove through the portal, not hesitating. Buffy let out a shriek, half stepping after him, but Connor was already in motion, cutting the head off the demon with one lop of his sword, the impact hurling the severed head through the air away from the portal.

Faith dodged back as the demon fell. "Bummer," she said morosely.

Connor turned, grabbing her arm. "More than you know," he sneered, turning and rolling, hurling her into the portal.

"Faith!" yelled Buffy.

The portal fizzled and sputtered, dying out, and Connor glanced at her. "She'll be fine," he said. "Spike's there with her, after all."

"Spike's dead!" snapped Buffy.

Connor thought about that for a moment. "Oh," he said finally. "You think he's still a vampire."


	7. Shanshu

Disclaimer: I don't own a thing.

Summary: Post AtS and BtVS, Faith and Xander are approached by a secret government agency. Surprises all around.

Rating: PG-13

Chapter 7: Shanshu

Somehow, Faith thought, as her entire body experienced a shock not entirely unlike going through a dishwasher, she was pretty sure that Connor hadn't picked her to throw through the portal because he liked her.

No, she was pretty sure it was because he didn't want Buffy on the other side, lying on top of Spike and sputtering.

Spike shoved her off quickly, rolling away from her. "Get off! Bloody women." He climbed slowly to his feet.

"Aren't you supposed to be dust?" asked Faith, lying on her back for a moment, letting the feeling of vertigo and pain pass through her, her flesh prickling and twitching.

Spike stretched, rolling his head in a tight circle with a sigh. "Only happens to vampires, luv."

"Right. Cause you're not a vampire." Faith stared at him, letting the sarcasm in her words drip down between them. "Cause, you know, you were," she added. "Back in Sunnydale. You were a vampire."

"Call me vampire lite, then," chuckled Spike. "When I told Buffy I'd died, I meant _recently._" He turned away, the long black duster floating behind him, and for the first time Faith noticed that it was a brand-new duster, not the old one she'd seen him wearing so often. "And then I came back," he added bitterly.

"And you weren't the only one, were you?" asked Faith, trying to figure out what he was talking about.

Spike made a face. "No, I wasn't. How'd you know about that?"

"A guess," admitted Faith. "It's never simple, is it? There's always a grander purpose, a higher scheme, somebody working you over."

"Yeah. Angelus returned," admitted Spike.

"Angel?" asked Faith, surprised.

"No," repeated Spike. "Angelus. And this time without the cuddly side."

"We can give him his soul back again," offered Faith, standing up slowly, facing the former vampire. Spike scowled at her.

"No, we can't. You think D-boy and I didn't try? We fought him, we tried to ensoul him, we tried everything." Spike looked up at the blood-red sky above them. "But Angel's soul...the bloody thing is gone. Destroyed." Spike turned back to Faith, carefully rubbing the tip of his nose. "You have something on you..."

She touched her nose, surprised to find a blade of purple grass there. She brushed it aside angrily, trying to focus on Spike and ignore the colors that were causing her head to pound. "So, what? Why are we here?"

"You're here because Connor thought that Buffy and I together would be a bad idea. He'd planned to come through with me—bad luck he couldn't. This is the place, this is the dimension, and this is where I go all apocalyptic on you." Spike grinned slowly, pulling the piece of paper he'd had before out of his pocket. "I'm going to destroy this world—the whole thing. A rain of fire, a little destruction—and a Slayer, to boot."

Faith glowered at him. "Fine," she said, after a moment's thought. "Let's get this done and get out of here. The rainbow sky is giving me a headache."

--

Connor crouched over the dead demon he'd slain. "And the Ugernoth contains the crystals that can tear reality...this is a good one, you'll like this."

Buffy glowered at him, and then turned back to glowering at Harmony. "I don't want to complain, since I kept a soulless vampire alive and helping me for several years, but she doesn't have a chip," pointed out Buffy. "Or anything else."

"She's pretty well helpless," said Connor.

"Hey!" exclaimed Harmony.

"No offense," added Connor. "But either of us could take her with a major head injury and one hand tied behind our back. Possibly both hands. You can stake a vampire with your feet, right?"

"Never tried," said Buffy darkly. "So, we're just going back to earth?"

"Yeah," said Connor. "There's a bit of fighting to be handled there."

Buffy sighed, watching the boy cut away at the demon's skin with his knife. "I just hope you realize that you're pretty much crazy," she muttered under her breath. "Spike's a vampire. That's not something you can just undo."

"Tell it to the guy with the beating heart," replied Connor. "I'm telling you, he's as human as you or I...okay, bad example, in both cases, but he's human."

"I'm human!" said Buffy, surprised.

Connor glanced at her. "And you've been dead...how many times?"

"Twice," she admitted grudgingly. "Okay, not a normal human, but a human."

"Well, he's not normal either. But he's human," replied Connor. "I don't know all the details—except the insanity part. That was pretty obvious. But he's alive."

Buffy glowered at Angel's son, who she still didn't trust, then turned her glower on Harmony, who she'd never trusted. "Somebody just explain to me right now why I'm not fighting either of you," she muttered under her breath. Connor glanced at her in surprise.

"What? Well, because I'm your ticket home and Harmony...um, anyway, I can open a portal to get us back home."

"What about Spike? And Faith?" asked Buffy.

"They've got their own problems to deal with," replied Connor. "Give me a hand?"

--

Spike stopped running for a second, glancing back to Faith, who was gasping for breath and staggering. "Too many smokes?" he asked idly, stopping.

She stopped and put her hands on her knees, bent over double and wheezing. "I swear to God, I'm giving them up," she gasped. She began patting her pockets, pulling out a carton and pulling a single cigarette out with a shaking hand, holding it to her lips while searching with her left hand for matches.

Spike was spinning his lighter in one hand, glaring at her. She glared back, trying to intimidate him, but he didn't offer her a light, continuing to spin the lighter contemptuously.

"When did you quit?" asked Faith, remembering that Spike had smoked.

"When I took my first breath of air into pink, glistening new lungs and started choking," said Spike quietly. "I tried smoking, but it just didn't work out. Sodding fragile human body couldn't handle it. Coughing, asthma, and then bloody bad breath. That came nearer to breaking me than anything else, when they took my smokes. I could handle everything else they threw at me, but when the bloody powers stole my smokes..." He shook his head abruptly, cutting off the rambling. "Sorry, just a bit out of sorts."

Faith glared at him. "You run pretty fast for an asthmatic," she noted, finally finding a matchbook in her hip pocket. She pulled it out and lit a match, shielding it from the hot wind with her left hand and lighting up the cigarette.

Spike's eyes raked over the cigarette greedily, and he took a deep breath, inhaling the wisps of smoke that made it all the way over to him. "You were sent here to bloody torment me," he decided, turning away.

Faith blew the smoke at him, grinning. "Probably. Where are we running to in such a hurry?"

Spike began walking in the direction he'd been running, his lighter still twirling nervously in his hand. "There's someplace here—we found it in some bloody book—and it's supposed to be the place. Where they are. The partners. Why am I talking to you? I just sound crazier when I talk to you."

"Yeah, you do," agreed Faith, tossing the cigarette to the ground and leaving it smoldering as she strode after Spike. She'd stopped breathing hard, but she still felt a little light-headed. "So, what do we have to face? An army of demons?"

"Nothing that dramatic," muttered Spike. "We just have to overcome our worst enemies to get inside."

"So, me versus B? I can handle it," said Faith, adding a little swagger to her stride.

Spike gave her an angry look. "I meant ourselves, stupid bint," he dismissed her, turning back towards his goal, striding towards an empty horizon made of shattered color schemes and darkness.

"Oh, okay," said Faith, surprised. "You mean, I have to fight you? But you're not a vampire any more, so I shouldn't—"

Spike whirled to face her, cutting her off in mid-sentence. "No, that's not what I mean. I mean you have to face yourself." He hesitated, his head bobbing for a second. "And don't ask me what that means. I have no idea what it means, and I reckon we'll figure that out when we get there."

He turned and began striding on again. Faith sighed and followed him. "So, you came back alive. How'd you manage to hide that?"

"You know how," snarled Spike. "At least you would if you'd think about it for a minute."

Faith thought for a minute. "Nope, still not getting it," she said. There was an edge to her voice; his attitude was starting to annoy her.

"You asked why Connor was allowed to get near me and touch me and nobody else was," replied Spike. "Because Harmony can hear a heartbeat, if she gets close enough. Even Buffy could tell, if she touched me, what temperature my skin is. Because even the braindead soldier-boy can tell I'm breathing, if he's close enough!" Spike glanced back at Faith contemptuously. "Well, that and everything feels so different now that it makes my skin crawl."

Faith, hurrying after him, managed a sardonic smile. "So, it wasn't just insanity, huh? It was also calculated deception. What's up with that, lying to Buffy?"

"It's not a lie!" snarled Spike. "I'm just...not ready to tell her. Not yet."

Faith sighed, sensing yet another angst-filled outburst approaching. "Why is that?" she asked, bracing herself.

To her surprise Spike was quiet, saying nothing. Instead he broke into a trot, moving ahead even faster. Faith took a deep breath and followed him, deciding in that instant that no matter how sweetly sexy the blonde vampire might be, she hated his guts.

They ran for awhile, until Faith was wheezing, at which point Spike slowed down again, letting her catch her breath. He began talking in a quiet voice, and she had to move up beside him to hear him.

"I don't really know any more," said Spike miserably. "She doesn't love me, and I don't think she ever will, you know. First it was all about Angel, then it was all about the Immortal, but it was never all about me. I...I was there for her, and I know it meant a lot to her, but it was never really about love, much as I'd have liked that. Do you know what my life is about, now? Same things it was always about. Loving but not being loved. Fighting. Angelus."

"The more things change, the more things stay the same?" asked Faith, really not understanding too much of this. So Spike was convinced that Buffy didn't love him? And somehow Angelus was mixed up in that. Because Buffy had loved Angel? Faith wished she could get him to talk sense.

But she was afraid to ask him more questions—he started to ramble every time she did that, and she was already tired enough without adding all that boring exposition to her life.

"The more I change, the more things stay the same," said Spike mournfully.

Faith sighed, giving up entirely on trying to get answers of any kind from him. She stomped along behind him in silence, feeling the scratching, itching pain in her soles where they hit the ground.

She hated him.

Spike, for his part, was feeling a lot saner than he had in months. He was close to his goal now, close to the goal he'd set the day he woke up alive and breathing in the sunlight.

"Are you going to be any good in a fight?" asked Faith suspiciously, as it dawned on her that she hadn't seen him fight since he got back, and he'd said he was a perfectly normal human being now.

Spike shrugged. "Not really," he said flatly.

Faith rolled her eyes, making a mental note to kick Connor's butt for throwing her in here with the crazy vampire. Well, ex-vampire. "Hey, there's a door up ahead."

There was indeed a door. Just a door, with nothing behind it. But when Faith tried to step around the upright, an invisible force pushed her back. Spike reached for the doorknob, and then fell backwards, landing with a grunt on the ground and rolling to his feet.

"Right!" he snarled, stalking forward. "So bloody typical."

Faith rolled her eyes heavenward. "Calm down," she advised, her voice just a little scratchy. "If this is anything like the last door we came to, there'll be a demon to greet us and open the door."

"But we're not with Harmony any more!" said Spike, his voice a little stressed. He glowered at Faith. "She doesn't have a soul, you see, and we do. Since we do, we can't get in. And they won't talk to us."

"Who was talking about talking?" asked Faith, curling her hands into fists. "I was thinking more along the lines of laying the smackdown on whatever opens that door."

Spike thought about it for a moment. "That's a good plan," he finally admitted, grudgingly.

"No, it's not," scoffed Faith. "It's a dumb plan. A violent plan." She thought about that for a second. "Which you obviously approve of," she added belatedly. "Dumb and violent. I guess it does sound familiar."

Spike growled at her, his scowl not abating. He leaned forward, examining the door, and tried to touch it. Faith started brushing dirt off her butt, watching the ex-vampire closely.

"Kind of funny that you came back a human and Angel came back a monster," she noted.

"Nothing funny about it," snapped Spike. "And it's not Angel. Angel died. All it is now is his demon. The soul was scrubbed out, cleaned out, leaving just a hollow husk...that happens to a lot of people near me."

Faith's eyes narrowed. "You're trying to tell me not to bring him back. Funny, that, didn't you hate him?" Her voice was a shade too cold.

"You mean, could I possibly be lying so that you won't bring Angel back?" asked Spike, chuckling. "I guess I could, if you put it that way."

Faith glared at him. "So you're just admitting to it?" she asked, angry.

He shrugged. "By now your friends have probably tried eight ways from Sunday to give him his soul back. It won't work, it hasn't worked, it can't work. Ever."

--

Willow sat cross-legged on the floor chanting, while Dawn and Xander watched. "This is creepy," noted Dawn.

Giles glanced at the young Slayers stationed at the corners of the room as he paced back and forth, watching Willow. Xander put a hand on Dawn's shoulder. "It's really not that bad, Dawn," said Xander. "I mean, Willow's done this spell before."

Willow stopped chanting, looking up. "I can't find it," she said, worried.

Dawn glared at Xander. "Right, it's really not that bad. He knew, Xander! He knew we couldn't give him soul back!"

Willow stood up, shaking her head. "There's more," she said quietly, blowing out a few candles. "I could feel residue, mystic residue."

"As if somebody had already tried this spell?" asked Giles, frowning. He turned and began walking to the door, shaking his head. He took his glasses off, stopping at the door. "Did Spike say anything about this?"

"Uh, yeah," said Xander. "I think so." He was silent a moment, thinking. "He said Angel was killed, but then he said Angel was destroyed. I wasn't really paying attention at the time, so I thought he was just repeating himself."

"So we think now that Spike might have known about Angelus?" asked Dawn. "Maybe already tried this spell?"

Giles sighed. "Between Angel's dubious connections, Angelus' appearance, and Spike's appearance, I am at a complete loss as to what we should do now." He rubbed his face.

Dawn shook her head. "This is Spike we're talking about," she noted. "That means that we can't afford to take anything he does for granted."

Willow nodded. "I'm afraid Dawn's right. He was there for us once, but he also tried to rape Buffy—he was a tool of the First before he helped close the Hellmouth."

"And does anybody else remember him beating up on Faith the night before we went to close the Hellmouth?" asked Dawn. "I used to love him like a brother, but he can be dangerous. He's worth saving, if we can save him, but he's also one of the most dangerous people I know."

"That two-Slayer count," agreed Xander.

"We must be cautious," said Giles. "I have Slayers searching for Angelus now. We'll see if they can't get some control of the situation."

"Slayers?" asked Xander, feeling his heart skip a beat. "This is Angelus, Giles! He'll kill them!"

"I have only the most experienced Slayers on this, Xander, and as many of them as I could get," said Giles quietly. "I know the stakes as well as you do, but Faith and Buffy, the only two Slayers who've ever managed to stop him...they're out of our reach just now, and we can't wait for them to get back. They may not be coming back!"

The words struck them all hard, and Xander could feel his knees shaking. He'd been crowding the idea that Faith and Buffy were gone forever out of his mind, trying to keep it back.

Faith was his Slayer, and no matter how much she freaked him out most of the time, he still thought of her as his friend. He'd accepted long ago that she would never warm up to him, that she would continue to treat him with the same heavy-handed attitude that he hated so much, but they really had bonded, they had reached at least some sort of understanding while fighting demons together.

And Buffy was, next to Willow, Xander's oldest and closest friend. The thought of losing her was enough to tear him in half.

--

Spike was squatting on his haunches, staring at the door. His hands were moving continuously, rubbing together, tapping on his thighs, even at one point darting to his mouth. As he chewed his nails Faith shook her head.

"It's some kind of test, right?" she asked, her voice smoky. There was a hint of a crack in her words, and he frowned, rubbing his forehead.

"Maybe," he said roughly, his voice low and laced with frustration and anger. "We'll see."

"I mean, maybe we're supposed to do something," said Faith, her voice as near to patience as she could get. Honestly, sometimes the man—formerly a vampire—annoyed her so much she thought she might kill him.

She'd done it before, killing people. It wasn't really that hard.

"No, I don't think so," said Spike. "If we were, then there wouldn't be a door we can't open blocking the path."

He made it sound as if it made sense. Faith growled, wanting very much to punch him. He'd said that he wasn't going to be any help in a fight, though, and if she were to go around hitting people with her Slayer strength...

Well, that would be falling right off the twelve steps, wouldn't it?

"So you're just going to wait." Faith bounced from one foot to the other impatiently. "Dude, you suck."

"Not any more," he replied. "That was more of a vampire thing."

The door opened, and Faith charged forward, throwing a fist up. To her surprise it was met by an equally strong fist, and she was pushed back in a very familiar way.

The same way Spike had when he was beating on her for throwing Buffy out when they had been fighting the First.

She stared at the vampire in front of them, the back of her neck tingling so hard that for a moment she thought that he'd be followed by an army of vampires. "Oh, crap," she said, picking herself up and finding her balance.

Spike rose slowly, smoothly. "Kind of thought I'd be seeing you again," he said, a resigned cast to his face.

A mirror version of him stared back, his face contorted into a vampiric visage. The mirror Spike managed a small growl, but no words.

"Oh, come on," said Spike, irritated. "The least you can do is a proper hello, me."

"He can't talk," said a voice that shocked Faith, causing her spine to stiffen and her head to spin. "He's just an animal." A double of Faith appeared behind Spike's double, her face twisted in a sneer that even Faith recognized as more than a little broken. "Just like you."

Spike's hands doubled into fists. "All right, Slayer-girl, this is how it goes. You're a Slayer, you do your thing. Take out the vampire-me. I'll take her."

"Nuts!" yelped Faith, moving forward as the shock hit her again.

The shock of realizing that Spike was going to be no good in this fight. He'd admitted to losing his powers, he'd said that he'd be no good in a fight. So now it was her...versus herself. And Spike.

"Have I told you yet that I hate you?" she asked him, seething, as she jumped forward to fight a mirror-Slayer and a mirror-vampire.


	8. Duality

Disclaimer: I don't own a thing.

Summary: Post AtS and BtVS, Faith and Xander are approached by a secret government agency. Surprises all around.

Rating: PG-13

Chapter 8: Duality

Faith shot forward, attacking the doubles who had come through the portal. As she slammed a fist into the double of Spike and kicked at the woman who looked more like a mirror than anything else, she felt her world explode in a white sheen.

She blinked her eyes, finding herself lying on her back below herself. "Hello, sweetums," said the double standing over her, grinning widely. "Don't you know it's rude to start a fight without bantering first?"

Faith rolled away quickly, elbows and knees scraping the sharp earth. She could already feel blood starting to flow, and her back hurt. The touch of the hot air on her back stung.

Then Spike, the real Spike, charged forward, punching the mirror-Faith away. "Banter? You want banter?" he asked angrily as she flew away. "Try fighting Tom Arnold." He followed up his words with a lightning fast attack, leaping forward at the mirror-Faith.

Faith batted him away. "Not fair!" she snarled. "You're supposed to fight yourself!" She lunged at the real Faith, who was ready, snapping herself upright with a quick twist and launching a few blows, snapping them out at her double.

She could see the vampiric Spike attacking the real one, and quickly slammed a punch into her double, sending the sneering Slayer-form flying back at the door and leaping at Spike's opponent, slamming a fist into his head, not letting up.

As she waled on the vampire, Spike moved back, watching the Slayer-double who stalked closer. "You're supposed to fight yourself," noted the mirror image, sneering. "Doesn't anyone follow the rules any more?"

"This is me, love," said Spike, grinning. "Can you name one solitary instance where I've followed the rules?"

She sneered at him, moving closer. "Come on, Spike. Do you really think this'll get you back into Buffy's good graces? Do you really think this will change things?"

Spike sneered. "You couldn't begin to understand why I'm doing this," he replied. "It stopped being about Buffy a long time ago. Do you know why I stayed by Angel's side?" He charged forward, punching the faux Slayer, knocking her off her feet to the ground, where he slammed a boot down at her. She rolled out of the way.

"Because you were afraid to go back to Buffy," the false Faith snarled.

"Not even close," said Spike, his eyebrows moving together in a dark scowl. "Although, yeah, that was there. No, the real truth of the matter—the real pain in my neck—is that I stayed in LA because I knew what was coming." He attacked again, kicking her as she tried to get up. "I knew what he had gotten himself into, and I knew...I knew he needed help. That's laughable, isn't it?"

The fake Faith, trying to rise, coughed. "A real bucket of laughs," she agreed weakly. He kicked her again, the sharp snap of ribs breaking echoing through hell.

"Worse than that," snarled Spike, leaning down and punching the Slayer. "There I was, hanging around to protect the one man I hated most in all the universe. Well, aside from Riley. And the whelp."

"But you failed," noted the Slayer below him, lashing out with a kick that knocked him off his feet. She drew herself up quickly, advancing on him. "He died, despite your help."

"So did I," pointed out Spike. "But we knew what we were getting into to. It was hardly a surprise!" He retaliated with a vicious attack, driving her back.

There was a sudden sound, like a window breaking, and Faith turned in surprise, to see the vampiric Spike dissolve into dust. The real Faith glared back at her, advancing slowly.

"You're a liar," seethed the real Faith.

"What? I haven't said anything!" protested the fake Faith.

"Not you!" snapped Faith. She turned to Spike. "You said you'd lost your powers!"

"I did not!" he replied indignantly. "Just said I wouldn't be much good in a fight. The whole lack of clarity and sanity thing coming back to haunt me. Never meant I'd lost anything." He punched the fake Faith, knocking her to the ground. "It hurts me that you'd accuse me of lying. I'm many things, but a liar isn't really one of them. Not any more."

The real Faith darted forward, the stake in her hand out, and stabbed the copy of herself in the heart, holding down any feelings of confusion. And wouldn't a psychiatrist have a field day with this? Here she was, killing herself.

Spike stared at the body as it turned to ash and imploded, much like a vampire's body. "Isn't that interested," he drawled, glancing at the door. He rushed to it, grabbing for the door handle.

The impact threw him through the air, slamming him into the ground. He groaned, twitching. "Aaagh..." he muttered.

"Brilliant, Einstein," said Faith sarcastically. "We faced the challenge and the door is open, but we still can't get near it."

"Oops," said Spike.

--

Connor and Buffy stood watching the portal form, standing over the bodies of the demon's they'd fought. Buffy was breathing hard, and Connor had broken into a heavy sweat.

Harmony stood behind them, glowering.

"So, was that Latin?" asked Buffy. "I've never been big on the Latin, so I didn't understand it."

"Actually, it was Thygaumenon," replied Connor. "I can't quite seem to get the hang of Latin either. I blame Angel for that—it's a lot easier to learn other languages when you're focused to almost inhuman levels. Being a normal human makes the other languages a little harder to learn. Although I'm still getting at least a C plus in Latin."

"Right," said Buffy, looking away.

"Although if I never get back to college, what with saving the world, I'll never know," added Connor. "The whole secret identity things sucks, big time. I spend all my time studying and killing things, and end up with a C- average. My folks thinking I'm slacking!" Connor glanced at Buffy. "You're a Slayer, right? You've done the whole secret identity thing, right?" Buffy nodded. "How did you make that work?"

"I never did get the hang of it," said Buffy with a little sigh.

Connor made a face. "Great," he muttered. "I'm thinking as soon as I'm out of college I'll just do things the way dad did them. No secret identity, just a great big sign on the door."

Buffy frowned. "You called him Angel a minute ago," she noted.

"What? Oh, the mix-up," said Connor, nodding. "I get a little confused, from having both memories."

"Both...memories?" asked Buffy, uncertain.

"Is it my turn to do the spiel?" asked Harmony.

"No," said Connor. "Buffy would probably stake you. I was kind of a bad guy," he admitted, scowling a little. "Nearly killed a lot of people. Nearly killed dad...Angel. He and I were...anyway, he wiped my memories and gave me a family."

"And...you have both memories, now?" asked Buffy.

Connor shrugged. "It's like a dream, really, the real Connor. A bad, scary, violent, and at times, um, a dream."

Buffy frowned at him, trying to absorb it all. "So, you're Angel's son, but he took away your memories, but they weren't really taken away?"

"Oh, they were really taken away. But then someone put them back," said Connor.

"So he took your old memories away and gave you new ones, and then you got your old ones back. And now you and Spike are breaking into hell?" Buffy tried to make it all make sense, but couldn't quite get over that one. "How'd you meet Spike?"

"The first time, I watched him getting beat up by a ..." Connor trailed off, frowning. "By an Old One, actually," he admitted, leading Buffy to frown. "Then he came to me. I didn't know him, really—didn't know any of the history between him and Angel. He was pretty incoherent then. If I hadn't..." Connor trailed off, glancing at Buffy.

"If you hadn't helped him, he wouldn't have made it?" asked Buffy. "You think I didn't try to help him?" There was very real anger in her voice.

"He doesn't think you did," replied Connor. "And you must have thought he was crazy. I'm certainly not in a position to judge. I thought he was crazy too."

"But you agreed to help him," noted Buffy. "Why?"

Connor shrugged, glancing back at Harmony, who made a face. "What he means," said Harmony, "is that it was one of those crazy Sire/Childe things."

Buffy glanced back at Harmony, confused. "What?" she asked, her eyes narrowing into a squint. "What does that mean?"

Connor glanced at Harmony, frowning. "Spike was related to Angel. Not in a nice, fluffy way, either. More in a screaming evil way."

"Screaming evil?" asked Buffy. Connor shrugged.

"Best I can do." Connor glanced back at Harmony again. "You know, it was weird. Big happy Manson family moment. We kind of bonded over my former hatred and his current hatred for my father."

Buffy scowled. "Yeah, I never got that," she admitted.

Connor scowled. "I have trouble getting it now," he admitted. "It's the whole father figure thing. Which is kind of wiggy, when you consider how much older than me Spike is."

Buffy's scowl faded a little. "Well, I guess I never did see him as a father figure."

Connor made a face. "Ew! Bad mental place!" he said. Buffy raised an eyebrow, but didn't say anything. "I mean, bad enough I had to get the low-down on my dad's relationship with you from Spike, but that...yeah, nuff said."

"That must have been an interesting discussion," huffed Buffy, looking irritated.

Harmony frowned. "Yeah, like it's been easy for me, seeing my blondie bear do nothing but mope around and dream about you for, oh, years!"

Buffy turned, glaring at the vampire. "Vampire, no soul, dust bait," hissed Buffy. Harmony quickly made a zipping motion across her mouth, twisted her hand as if locking it, and threw her hand over her shoulder.

Buffy rolled her eyes, turning back to Connor. "Okay, what were we talking about?"

"How weird it is for me to be talking to one of my dad's old girlfriends," said Connor, grimacing. "We can move on, if you like."

Buffy sighed, glaring at the portal that was forming slowly. "Why is it taking so long?" she asked.

"Because it's a tear in reality," replied Connor. "We need control, above all else."

--

Xander sat with Dawn, twirling a set of keys in his hand. "What really gets me," he said softly, "is that Spike got some kind of twisted revenge on D'Hoffryn."

"They might have set that up for you, made a big show to try and turn you to their side," said Dawn dubiously.

"Assuming they knew we were coming," countered Xander. "It was an odd thing to do. Even knowing what we know now..."

Xander glanced around the empty library, sighing and rubbing his face. Dawn nodded, tapping the pages of the book open in front of her. "No assumptions, right?" she asked.

"No assumptions," he agreed.

"You miss Faith, don't you?" she asked.

He glared at her with his one eye. "She's only been gone a few days, Dawn. I couldn't possibly miss her foul language, her smelly smoking habit, and her annoying innuendos yet."

Dawn nodded, glancing away. "Somehow it all ties together, and we just can't see it," she said. "It was some big plan."

"When'd you get all grown up?" asked Xander suspiciously. Dawn glared at him, biting her lower lip.

"Sometime between my mom dying, Buffy dying, and being sentenced to living in the same house with the walking ego," she said. "And there was something in there about my best friend trying to rape my sister. My world turned pretty ugly in a hurry, and in the middle of all that, yeah, I've done my best to grow up. So what?"

"No, I mean, tall," said Xander. "I just realized you're as tall as me now."

Dawn laughed. "Okay, at least one of us grew up," she said, glancing around to make sure nobody was near them and listening. "I'm going to ask Giles for a status report on the Angelus situation later."

"Good," muttered Xander.

"In the meantime, we need to figure out Spike a little better. Are you up for a session with Riley?" Xander stared at Dawn uncertainly.

"You want to go talk to Riley?" he asked, his voice a bit off.

"Now," said Dawn firmly. "He's seen Spike. Better than that, he can take us straight to Drusilla."

Xander stared at Dawn, and for a second he felt like yelling at her as if she was a little girl again. He wanted very much to simply begin screaming, and ranting, and throwing his arms about.

But, of course, she was right. Drusilla understood Spike better than anybody else.

"Let's go," said Dawn, seeing that he wasn't going to fight it.

"At some point in your life, you became a brat, you know that?" asked Xander.

She grinned. "It was when Buffy died and everybody started giving me whatever I wanted," she told him.

As Xander stood he felt a creaking in his hip, where he'd been clawed by a hell hound at some point. A bleak reminder that he was all too mortal. An even bleaker reminder that Faith was there to save him.

She'd been the one who pulled the hell hound off him after he'd been stupid enough to end up under it. He'd been nearly torn to shreds, and had ended up with only a few cuts in the end.

Thanks to her.

His relationship with Faith, always a touchy subject, seemed tailor made to send him into fits of paranoia and nervous fidgeting at the best of times. Now, with her gone and stuck in some hell dimension, he felt even worse.

He followed Dawn, who obviously already had a pretty good idea where Riley was. As they exited the spacious library and entered the barracks section of the government compound Xander unconsciously straightened up, squaring his shoulders, which caused another twinge of pain, this time in his back.

Riley was standing at a desk, flipping through a notebook in a quick, methodical way.

"Riley," said Dawn, her voice a little more forceful than Xander had expected. She really had grown up while he wasn't watching, he though in awe.

"Hi, Dawn," said Riley awkwardly. "Um, can I help you guys?"

Xander stepped forward, taking the lead quickly. He couldn't remember whether Dawn and Riley had ever gotten along, and he seemed to remember Dawn ending up with an undying hatred for Buffy's other boyfriends.

Or was that him?

"Riley, we need to know more about what Spike's done, what he plans to do, and why he's doing it," said Xander quickly. "What can you tell us?"

Riley shrugged. "Not much more than I've already said." He looked uncomfortable. "Are you going to ask to see Drusilla too?" he asked.

"Too?" asked Dawn, her eyes narrowing.

"I just sent Giles away with Major Hartney," said Riley. "He wanted to question her. He has a few Slayers with him—you didn't know about that, did you?"

"No," said Xander tightly. "Where is she? Here, in your new base?"

"We flew her out here yesterday," admitted Riley. "At Giles' request."

"Take us to them," said Dawn.

--

The portal appeared out of nowhere, on the earth side, just a quick zip of light. Harmony fell through first, and as soon as she had hit the ground she started running.

Buffy fell through next, with Connor right behind her, and the portal zipped closed again. Buffy glanced towards Harmony, tensing as if to give chase. Connor grabbed her arm, stopping her.

"Spike promised she could run away," he apologized. "Because she helped us. A lot. Almost enough to make up for betraying Angel, in her own way."

Buffy shook his hand off angrily. "Right, that makes it okay to let a vampire go!"

Connor shrugged. "You do what you have to, I guess," he said, stepping back. "But just remember, she's pretty much helpless."

"Except when she kills people!" snapped Buffy. "Why do you seem to forget that?"

Connor shrugged. "Because she's never really killed that many, and because she helped me break into hell. You know, the important things."

Buffy glared at him. "Yeah, that's right, you just broke into hell. Doesn't that make you the bad guy?"

"I'm doing this to save the earth," said Connor defensively. "Is that what makes people bad guys these days?"

"You're the Destroyer," hissed Buffy.

"I destroy demons," countered Connor quickly. "That's kind of an important distinction, you know."

She glared at Angel's son, then looked around. "Where are we?" she asked.

He glanced around quickly. "Somewhere near the secret hideaway," he responded. "Come on, let's go."

They moved away from the large billboard they'd appeared next to, wandering down the lonely street through the city. At the end of the street a green-skinned demon wearing a trenchcoat, sunglasses, and a fedora was standing waiting for them.

"Took you forever," he groused miserably. "I thought you were running away from the Slayers? And where's Spike?"

"Spike's still in hell. They wouldn't let me in," said Connor. "This is Buffy."

"The Buffy?" asked the demon. "Well, color me peach and call me Peaches." There was a depressed quality to his voice, and Buffy stared at him for a minute.

"This is one of your agents?" she asked Connor.

"This is Lorne," said Connor. "Lorne, do you suppose we could move inside? There's probably a dozen bounty hunters looking for Spike already, and I don't want them to see Buffy if we can avoid it."

"Keep your pants on, kiddo," groused Lorne, turning. "Follow the green demon," he said with a sigh, moving away at a quick walk.

"Lorne worked with my dad," explained Connor. "He's an old friend. Used to watch me when I was a baby."

"What was that? Two years ago?" asked Lorne grumpily. "I wouldn't even be helping you except that I'm oddly attracted to the idea of living the rest of my life with all my limbs."

Buffy glared at Connor, who shrugged. "Spike was a bit mad," he explained.

--

Faith stared at the door, bored out of her mind and ready to commit a particularly heinous act to Spike's body.

Spike, for his part, lounged about as if he had all of eternity to study the door. He had abandoned his duster, hell being hotter than he'd expected, and was wearing black jeans and a tight black tee.

"I'm going to throw your skinny butt through that door in a minute if you don't stop pacing!" threatened Faith.

Spike snorted, continuing to pace. "First, you couldn't if you tried. Second, I'm working on a plan here."

Faith sighed, sitting down and leaning her forehead against her knees. "What's your plan once we get through, anyway?" she asked.

Spike grinned. "Well, first we'll kill some blokes. Then we'll unleash destruction. Then...well, that's the hardest part. I'm not quite through with that plan yet."

"What plan?" asked Faith.

"There's a chance—a very small chance—that I can make things right," said Spike. There was a hint of his manic insanity in the statement, and Faith sighed theatrically. "Just a chance!" he added quickly.

"This is about Buffy, right?" asked Faith in disgust. Spike was silent for a long moment.

"I love her," he admitted. "More than anything else on earth. But she doesn't love me...and she never will. Do you know how much it kills me to admit that? It tears my heart out when I think about that. No, this is isn't all about Buffy. Things haven't been all about Buffy for a while."

The door opened.

Spike stared at it in disgust. "Oh, ha bloody ha!" he snorted, marching towards the door.

The sudden impact knocked him flat on his back, and he groaned, staring at the open door. "Oh," he said blankly.

Faith bounded to her feet. "What was that?" she asked, uncertain.

He groaned, standing up and rubbing his face. "Our worst enemy is ourselves," he grumbled. "We have to face that. Ergo, it's time for us to face your worst enemy, then presumably the force field will disappear."

Faith glared at him. "Run through that once more," she said suspiciously.

He sighed, rubbing his face again. "The door opened when I faced my worst fear—admitting out loud that Buffy doesn't love me. What's yours?"

"But we faced ourselves!" protested Faith. "I staked them both!" She glared at the open door, and the refracting colors beyond it. "We already did this!"

"It works on different levels, apparently," said Spike sourly. "So, let's get to your worst fear."


	9. Hero

Disclaimer: I don't own a thing.

Summary: Post AtS and BtVS, Faith and Xander are approached by a secret government agency. Surprises all around.

Rating: PG-13

Chapter 9: Hero

Faith glared at Spike. "Oh, for crying out loud!" she yelled, her voice cracking midway through. She'd already spent almost a day in hell with him, and things were just looking worse and worse.

"No, really," Spike insisted. "I said the one thing I was afraid to say, and the door opened. You just say something you don't want to say, and the force field thing should drop."

Her glare intensified. She reflected briefly that if he were still a vampire, she could have hit him without even the slightest bit of guilt on the subject. Alas, now he was human and the joy of force-feeding him his own guts were to be denied to her.

Unless, of course, she were to go evil again. That was always an option.

"So you just want me to spew my frickin problems until we can go in?" she asked, hating the very fact that she was even saying this.

Faith was not a 'sharing' type of gal. The closest she'd ever gotten to that had been Robin, and that had been because he'd seen right through most of her poses. Not because she'd told him anything.

Sure, there had been a lot she'd told him. But it wasn't ever the deep stuff, the old stuff, the important stuff. She was at heart a very private person, and wasn't about to tell Spike, who was more or less a complete stranger, the story of her life.

Spike gazed at her, tilting his head. "Okay, or not," he said shortly, turning away from her. She'd been expecting him to hit her again, and snorted impatiently at this new tactic.

"What, guilt tactic? Trying to get me to just spill cause you're ignoring me? Grow up," said Faith impatiently.

Spike turned back to her, an annoyed look on his face. "Look, you think this whole gig is for me? Screw it!" He turned and started walking away.

"What gig is that?" yelled Faith.

He glanced over his shoulder. "The whole hero thing!" he shouted back, still walking away. "You know, your gig."

He stopped about fifty feet from her, and even at that distance she could see that his shoulders were shaking. She couldn't tell if it was from rage, laughter, or even some kind of fit. At this point she didn't really care.

"What is your problem?" she yelled. Under her breath she added, "stupid vampire."

"Not a vampire any more," he said, and she moved forward, trying to hear him. He turned around, repeating it louder. "I'm not a bloody vampire any more!"

"You still act like one," retorted Faith. "You brood, you yell, you act like a four-year-old. You should just freaking grow up."

Spike stalked closer to her. "Oh, goody," he said sarcastically. "Let's analyze me. Why do we fight, luv? Answer me that one."

Faith stared at him. "Why do I fight with you? Because you're dumb, stupid, and a shi—"

"No," interrupted Spike impatiently. "Not why do you fight with **me**. Why do we go on fighting the forces of darkness? Why do you get up and fight the world, every bloody day?"

She stared at him, uncomfortable aware that they'd gone back to analyzing her. She wished she could somehow get some control of this conversation. "Duh. Sacred calling," she said flippantly.

"Sacred calling," muttered Spike. "That's terrific, you know. I've killed more of your kind than anybody else, you know. Although Dru's working on catching up, but I'm still the man, the killer of Slayers." Spike spread his arms wide. "Tell me, why do I fight?" He glared at her, daring her to answer him.

Faith rolled her eyes. "Right, because it isn't about Buffy, right? So you're just a hero, huh? All goodness and light?" she taunted him.

He glowered at her. "Funny, inn't it?" he asked, moving closer so that he was right in front of her. "Remind you of something? Oh, yeah, that sacred calling thing?" He moved closer, a smirk playing across his lips. "That's just a mask. The easy reason that we throw up front, the one we hide behind. That's what you are, hiding. Big, tough girl like you, hiding behind a front. Inn't there a word for that?"

Once before, when he'd confronted her about usurping Buffy's position, he'd managed to goad her into hitting him. After that she'd vowed to keep a cool head around Spike, to stay calm, and not to hit him.

She'd forgotten just how easily he could rile her.

She slammed a fist into his face, rocking him backwards. "Shut your freakin mouth!" she demanded, moving forward, into his personal space. He rocked back, eyes widening in pain, and clapped both hands to his face.

"Ow!" he yelped, glaring at her. "Yeah, that's right, bury your problems, don't talk about them, just hide behind your fists!" He turned away, stalking further away from the portal.

Faith glanced back at the door, then followed him.

--

When Xander, Dawn and Riley arrived in the dark, heavily guarded inner compound Giles was just getting ready to go inside, holding a notepad and a pen. He hesitated when he saw them, surprised.

"Worried we wouldn't approve?" asked Xander, a bit bitterly.

Giles stared for a second, then shook himself. "I know how you feel about vampires, Xander," he said carefully. "And we desperately need answers right now."

"About Angel, Spike, and just what drove them to what they did?" asked Dawn. "Yeah." She glanced at Riley. "Open the door," she said, her voice every bit as bossy as her sisters. He blinked rapidly in surprise, then nodded to the soldier standing by the door.

Drusilla sat in the middle of the large room, chained to the floor. She looked up at them vacantly, drug-dulled eyes blinking to try to clear the mists of her mind. A smile curled up around the corners of her mouth.

"Come to play, have we?" she purred.

Giles stood in the doorway, glancing at the soldiers standing guard. They all seemed reasonably alert, but he knew that Drusilla's hypnotic thrall had been what killed the Slayer Kendra, not any fighting power Drusilla had brought to bear.

He kept his gaze down. "Ah, yes," he said. "We were hoping you would tell us about Spike."

"Spike? What Spike?" she asked, her accent mangling the name into 'spoike.' "He's gone away, far away, leaving the William-beast to torment me."

"The soul," said Xander. "We got that."

Drusilla considered him, tilting her head. "Do you truly? I think the death and blood and stars have all spoken, and they don't like you at all."

Xander shifted uncomfortably. "Uh, right. What about Angel?"

Her smile returned. "The Angel-beast is gone forever now, isn't he? I can see the new night dawning in darkness and blood, and it's a good night for me." She rocked her head back and forth. "He'll come for me, daddy will," she added quietly.

"I doubt it," replied Giles. "He's forgotten you, moved on to shinier, newer pastures."

Dawn glanced at Giles in surprise, not expecting the sudden goad. Drusilla reacted violently, jumping to her feet and jumping to the end of her chains. They gave a loud clang as she reached the end, and she stumbled back a step. "Nooo!!" she wailed, clutching her hands to her ears.

As she rocked back and forth Dawn glanced to Xander, who was fidgeting, his body language clearly showing how much he wanted to be out of there. Giles, however, moved forward, triumph on his face. "But the William-beast came back for you. Why?" he asked.

"Not the same!" shrieked Drusilla. "Oh, you're so naughty!" she complained. Her scowl was petulant, childish.

Xander stepped forward, swallowing. "What happened? Why did the Angel-beast die?" he asked. Drusilla looked up, surprised. "Come on," said Xander with a nervous smile. "You want to talk about that, don't you? You like to talk about it."

"Because he was too good," pouted Drusilla. "Oh, you've been wicked, wicked, wicked," she purred. "Breaking into hell, haven't you?" Xander shifted his weight from one foot to the other nervously.

"Uh, yeah, that was Spike," he replied.

"He went to the lawyer, who wanted to kill him so badly," she sobbed. "My Spoike all gone, and the William-beast searching for a home in hell."

"Why was he searching for that home?" asked Xander.

"Because he's good, now," spat Drusilla. "Because he's killed all the dark things, and now wants to find even darker shadows."

Xander felt his stomach flip-flop within him. "He really does want to kill the bad things?" he asked.

Drusilla slowly deflated, as if she were a balloon and the air were being let out. She descended slowly, sitting on the floor and awkwardly wrapping chained arms around her knees.

"He's all a mess, my Spoike," she said mournfully. "All good and noble, and all the things he hates." She turned her gaze to Riley. "And you've made him worse!" she hissed. "All your noble words and plans to rotten, rotten goodness, feeding him on ashes and dust!"

--

Buffy glowered at Connor as he ate, trying to will his digestive system to break down, or at least for some small choking to start up as he wolfed down the food.

He continued to eat unabashedly, shoveling the food in. The green demon was off somewhere else in his safe haven, grumbling.

"So, you've been hanging out with Spike," said Buffy cautiously.

"Yep," said Connor, putting his fork down.

"Has he...mentioned me?" asked Buffy uncertainly.

Connor frowned. "I can't say that he has," he said carefully. "I mean, he did explain everything about you and my dad, and your relationship, and that you and he...sort of had a relationship. But he never talked about you."

Buffy grunted, shaking her head. "Great, just great," she mumbled.

"Although he...he was really bitter when he talked about you and dad," admitted Connor. "I mean, more than usual. He's kind of mad about being human now, too."

"He's always been a little too complicated for his own good," muttered Buffy. "So, what now? You have some kind of backup plan?"

Connor shrugged. "Actually, we're about done with this plan. Spike'll do his job, and I'll do mine."

"And what's your job?" asked Buffy.

"Well, I go back to college," said Connor uncertainly. "Maybe. I've got to wait here for Spike, though—at least forty-two hours."

"Why?" asked Buffy.

"Because we're supposed to meet here if we get out of hell," replied Connor. "You know, because...uh..."

There was a knock at the door, and Connor stood quickly, running to it. "You've got the stuff?" he asked.

The girl who entered was a little shorter than Connor, and stuck her tongue out at him. "I got the stuff, doofus," she replied, sidling in with a box full of stuff. "Who's this, one of your soldier friends?"

"Um, no, this is Buffy. She's a Slayer," said Connor. "Buffy, this is my sister, Sarah. Sar, just put it anywhere."

The girl sighed, tossing her hair impatiently. "Whatever, dipweed," she said. Buffy noted that despite the insults she quickly obeyed Connor.

"Your sister?" asked Buffy, taken a little off guard.

Sarah deposited the box in the corner, ignoring Buffy. "I've got your stupid paperweight collection, your 'spellbooks'—if mom finds out about any of this, she'll go ballistic, you know."

"I know," said Connor. He turned back to Buffy. "We just have a little work to do."

"Work?" asked Buffy.

"Angelus is out there, and I want your help taking him down," said Connor grimly.

"Angelus?" asked Buffy, her eyes widening. "Angel!"

Connor rolled his eyes. "Now I have to explain, don't I?" he sighed. "Sar, why don't you go get some food from Lorne? This is going to take a while."

Sarah shook her head. "Come on, you can talk shop with me here, can't you?" she asked, eager to be involved. Connor rolled his eyes.

Buffy sighed. "Tell me about Angelus," she said.

--

Faith watched Spike carefully as he kicked the ground, scuffing the toe of his boot across the purple gravel. The bleached-blonde ex-vampire was grumbling under his breath, and she noted that his scowl was still fixed firmly in place.

She wanted very badly to go hit him till he stopped annoying her. She was beginning to work out Xander's undying hatred of the apparently now mortal demon. In fact, she was just about ready to start beating on the now-alive skinny twit herself.

He looked up at her, and his scowl deepened. His next kick at the ground sent up a cloud of green dust.

He was standing just short of the door, close enough that if he turned too fast it was going to send him flying again.

He continued working at the ground with his foot, seemingly oblivious to the world. When he suddenly spoke Faith gave a slight jump, not expecting it. "Talking's not so bloody hard," he muttered. "S not like I asked you to do anything."

Faith wondered if she should just ignore him. She was getting pretty thirsty, not to mention that she hadn't eaten for a few days.

He moved away from the door, still scowling. "I mean, sure, you went bad," he said. "Doesn't that make you a lot like the creatures you hunt?"

"You're fishing," snapped Faith. "You don't know **nothing** about me, or why I went bad!"

"Don't I?" asked Spike, amused by her response. "I seem to recall something about taking Buffy's body...her life. Something about wanting what she had—don't tell me that's all in my head."

Faith shook her head. "That's gone and done," she said. "I got over it. She got over it. Why don't you get over it?"

"Oh, have I touched a nerve?" mocked Spike. "Let me hit another one."

"No, why don't I?" snapped Faith, balling her hands into fists.

"Violence? Oh, there's an original answer," taunted Spike. "And you must just be seething that the one-eyed carpenter is your Watcher, aren't you?"

"Shut up!" snarled Faith.

"Didn't you try to kill him, back in the day? Oh, mercy me," said Spike happily, dancing from one foot to the other. "I bet that makes for a few awkward silences. Why'd you try to kill him, anyway? Did he call you a worthless thing?"

Faith swung at Spike, who dodged out of the way quickly. "No?" he continued. "Well, then maybe he tried to save you. A bad habit of his, trying to save his women...well, women he wishes were his...you never slept with the puppy-boy, did you?"

Faith silently swung again, this time hitting Spike. He rocked back, a grin on his face. "You did! Aw, I'll bet he just clung to your ankles after that. And you went bad, and he tried to save you. And look what you gave him for his troubles. Did you hurt him, Slayer?"

"No!" she snarled.

"Aw, torture hurt your poor, delicate stomach?" taunted Spike.

"You think I don't know evil?" demanded Faith. "You think I don't know torture? I just saved it for my Watcher, that's all."

"Who was your Watcher, Giles?" asked Spike, amused. "That's a good one. He never let on."

"No," said Faith, snarling. "A friend of Angel's."

Spike's face hardened instantly. "Wes?" he asked, surprised.

Faith froze, astonished. She'd forgotten for a minute that Spike had been with Angel at the end. "Yeah, Wes," she said softly.

"You cut Wes up?" repeated Spike. "I bet that went over real well." His face was dark, and for a second Faith thought that Spike was going to attack her. But he pulled back instead. "Now you run around Slaying with your old bedsheets buddy, eh?" He moved closer. "I bet it hurts a lot, doesn't it? The one part of your past that you're just dying to forget, the part where you hurt someone who only ever did good to you—and you're stuck with it all the time."

Faith backed away from him slowly, unable to hold on to her rage any longer. She could feel tears threatening at the corners of her eyes, and swiped at her eyes furiously with the back of her hand. "Shut up," she managed to whisper.

Spike stopped walking forward, and for the first time she saw how much of the demon was still in him. The purple shadows across his face cut the fine lines of his cheekbones into a hellish mask, behind which she could actually see sympathy that burned under her skin like a million hells.

In his bright blue eyes she could see compassion, something that hurt worse than his fists ever could. She looked away, not able to bear the torture in his mocking voice and caring eyes. "Just shut up!" she managed to snap, her voice rising a little bit above a whisper.

He raised his hands as if in surrender, something mocking in the way he did so. "Sorry to have got under your skin," he said, his voice mocking.

But now she was all too aware that beneath the mocking voice there was a bitter edge. She turned back to him slowly. "And you think you know what that feels like?" she asked acidly.

"Buffy ever tell you why I went to find a soul?" asked Spike. Faith shook her head. "I tried to rape her," said Spike, his voice cracking on the word. Faith took a half step back, the word surprising her.

"What?" said Faith, angry again. And what was she angry about? It's not like Spike had done any worse than she'd tried to do to Xander that time in the motel so long ago when he'd tried to help her.

Still, she couldn't help remembering the way Buffy had reacted to the vampire, the ways Buffy had seemed to forget. The way he'd been forgiven.

"And you came back with a soul, and that was all gone, huh?" asked Faith bitterly.

"Don't see you and the monkey-boy acting all tiptoes and velvet," snarled Spike. "And you think I forgot? You think Dawn forgot? I lost Dawn that day—didn't know it at the time, but she never forgave me, you know. And you think you own the market on angst and tears and all things ugly and spiteful? Hah. At least for you the whelp isn't a constant stream of spite."

"No, only a twenty-four hour source of guilt!" snapped Faith right back, trying to grab back some of the rage.

He cocked his head to one side suddenly, appraising her. "And what hurts worse, that you tried to hurt him, or that he won't even talk to you now?"

Faith scowled at him. "Don't try to psychoanalyze me," she spat.

Spike shrugged. "You kind of love him, don't you?" he asked.

"No!" she said urgently, her eyes widening.

"You spend all your time wishing things could be different, watching him and wishing he'd look at you," hissed Spike. "You wish he would just notice you at least, treat you like a person. You spend all your time trying to protect him, and he doesn't even notice."

Every word was so on the mark that Faith felt a squeezing, hot pain in her chest. "Stop it!" she yelled.

He smirked. "I've been there, on that trip," he said, mocking her. "Kind of hurts, doesn't it?"

She turned away, rejecting the sympathy he offered. "He's nothing to me!" she spat. "Not now, not ever!"

Spike moved closer. "Deny all you want, he does mean something to you," he whispered. "And you broke that all when you hurt him, didn't you?"

She scowled at him. "Don't analyze me," she threatened again. Only her voice was still losing its force, and now she could barely even hear herself. She turned away, trying to walk away, but he stopped her by dropping a hand on her shoulder.

"You're here because you tried to kill Xander, you know," he said. "All that rot about a Holy Mission or whatever—it comes down to the man you tried to kill. The one who haunts you. You can never make it right...but you keep trying anyway."

She wasn't able to hold back the hot tears anymore. She could feel them streaming down her cheeks, and kept her head turned from him so he wouldn't notice. "Go soak your head," she managed to croak.

In the annals of comebacks, it wasn't even a footnote. It was a footnote to a footnote about pathetic comebacks.

Spike's hand was warm on her shoulder, and he gave a gentle squeeze. "You're not alone here," he whispered.

She tried to pull free, but he somehow turned her lunge away from him into something else, pulling her back and turning her around, and somehow she was in his arms, holding him and sobbing.

He just held her, one hand on her back moving slowly to soothe her. He didn't say anything more, words gone for the moment.

After a moment she opened his eyes, staring at the door behind him. She could see air moving through the door now, where it had been stagnant before.

"You jerk," she whispered, pushing him away.

He shrugged, adjusting his duster. "You aren't going to complain that I was using you, are you?" he asked, a bit angry already. "It was the only way out of here, and you knew it."

"You're a heartless bastard," she replied coldly. "Let's get out of here."

They walked through the open portal together.


	10. Angel'Angelus

Disclaimer: I don't own a thing.

Summary: Post AtS and BtVS, Faith and Xander are approached by a secret government agency. Surprises all around.

Rating: PG-13

Chapter 10: Angel/Angelus

Dawn and Xander sat in the quiet library leafing through the dusty tomes. Xander was bored, but he kept going anyway, not willing to face Dawn.

Dawn appeared to be fighting against tears, but she continued working doggedly, reading through the long texts. Xander's one eye had long ago become too tired to read, but he continued pretending, afraid of the confrontation that he knew was coming.

"Was I too hard on him?" asked Dawn in a small voice. Xander looked at her helplessly, not knowing what to say. "I mean, he used to be my friend. I drove him away, I told him that he was less than a thing to me...I hated him. Was that too hard?"

Xander shook his head. "Don't you think you're asking the wrong person, Dawn? Even when he was your friend...I hated him. Even when he was good, I hated him. The closest we came to getting along was the day before the big fight with the First. Do you know how I pulled that off? I IGNORED him, Dawn." He could feel a muscle in his cheek twitching even at the thought of Spike.

Dawn shook her head, rubbing slowly at her face with the insides of her wrists, wiping the tear tracks away. "He was my only real friend that summer, you know," she said tearfully. "He tried to rape my sister: that wasn't just something I could ignore. I went from loving him to hating him, while he was going through the worst torture of his life. And I didn't feel guilty until I found out he hadn't turned evil after all. What kind of friend am I?"

Xander shrugged. "He's still in hell," he pointed out.

"But maybe for good reasons!" snapped Dawn. "This is killing me, Xander."

Xander sighed. "And he's there with the Slayer I'm supposed to be protecting. You think this is somehow easier for me, Dawn?"

"Why do you think I'm talking to you?" snapped Dawn. She shook her head, penitent almost immediately. "I'm sorry, Xander. I just don't even know what's going on anymore."

"You and me both," he sighed. He put the book down, leaning back in his chair. "We don't know where Angelus has gone, we don't know where Faith, Buffy and Spike have gone...not to mention the 'destroyer.' We don't know anything!"

Dawn shivered. "Actually, I think I know where Angelus went," she offered.

"What?" said Xander, surprised.

Dawn met his gaze. "It's just a guess, but if Drusilla thought he would come for her—why wouldn't he?"

Xander stared at her. "You mean you think he's still hanging around here?"

Dawn nodded. "I think he's going to hit us, and soon."

--

Buffy watched Connor, who was sniffing the air. "We're close," reported Connor happily. He was wearing a vest festooned with straps and various weapons over a bright orange shirt that was a bit tight, with loose baggy pants to complete the absolute absurdity of the look.

Buffy hefted the broadsword in her hand grimly. "Great," she said shortly. "And soon we'll meet Angelus." She was all too conscious that instead of a vest covered in knives she had a white tee and blue jeans.

Connor glanced to her. "Um, I could carry that for you, if you'd like," he said. His eyes were serious, even if there was still a bit of humor in his voice.

"No, that's okay," said Buffy. "Last time I fought Angelus was bad enough; I'm going to be ready for him this time."

Connor scowled. "A completely dual view of him—that's something I never had. Well, I did, but I just thought he was Angelus all the time. Come to think of it, so did Spike. You seem to have mentally separated Angel and Angelus."

Buffy laughed harshly. "Sorry, but I can't think of them as the same person. I've fought them both...and there is a difference."

Connor shrugged. "I don't really understand the whole soul deal myself...but these days, I do notice the differences. Especially around Spike."

"Spike?" asked Buffy, and there was a very tentative note in her voice.

Connor gave a wry grin. "I don't know what the soul is, what it does, or how it affects him...but I do know that he hates my dad, but he's doing this anyway."

Connor started walking down the street and Buffy followed him, scowling.

--

The instant Spike and Faith made it through the door there were demons attacking them, guards armed with swords and axes.

Spike dove low, reaching up and grabbing at demons, trying to get a weapon.

As he did that Faith immediately jumped up, planting a foot on a demon's chest and grabbing his head, kicking off and twisting.

As she did so the demon's neck snapped, and she was dropped back to slam inot the ground, driving the breath out of her. She tried to roll, but was unable to do more than a half-roll onto her side to gasp for breath.

She heard a grunt, and then a demon slammed into the floor next to her, an axe buried in its head. She reached out and quick grabbed it, wrenching it free, and rolled away to her feet.

They were already down to just four or five demons, and Spike was fighting like a maniac, spinning and kicking and punching frenetically, his face twisted into a dark scowl.

She moved in quickly, lopping the head off one demon before they noticed she was moving. Another one immediately attacked her, a large arm flying at her, but she blocked it with her offweapon arm and slammed the axe into its face.

She saw another fall, and noticed that Spike had stopped fighting. She looked around, searching for another target, and found that they had all fallen.

"Yay us," she said shortly.

He pulled the piece of paper from his pocket. "Now or never," he said, licking his lips.

As he began to read from the paper in a language Faith had never heard, focusing entirely on it, it occurred to her that she'd never seen him read before. She'd assumed that he couldn't read, or that he didn't care to read.

The chanting wasn't in any language that she recognized, and after a moment she realized with a start that it wasn't really a human language. There was growling, which Spike had to struggle with, and even the occasional trilling sound.

That's when the rain of fire began.

--

Angelus moved through the dark streets of LA, prowling.

Prowling was one of his favorite activities. It was right up there with lurking. That and killing people in really evil ways.

He knew he was being followed. His son was running around behind him somewhere, conjuring up all manner of inappropriate Star Wars comments in his head. "No, Connor, I am your father," he said experimentally, listening to his smooth voice echo through the empty streets.

Then he chuckled and kept walking.

LA was different. Very different. He was all too aware that it had changed mostly because of Angel's actions, which was really annoying him.

A lot of the darkness was gone, scrubbed clean. Wolfram and Hart had been nearly destroyed in the final blaze of battle.

At least everyone else had died, too. He distinctly remembered Spike losing his head, Gunn falling, and Illyria being torn to little bits by some particularly vindictive demons.

He grinned at the memory. "Good times," he said aloud.

"You always talk to yourself?" asked a cranky female voice.

Angelus turned, smiling. "I thought you'd be around here somewhere," he said triumphantly.

Buffy advanced on him with a scowl. "High school reunion, huh?" she asked.

Angelus grinned. "Only this time without a pesky gypsy curse hanging over my head...or Spike. Isn't that grand?"

"Just terrific," said Connor, moving out of the shadows behind Buffy. "Hi, how've you been? Good to see you again."

Angelus chuckled. "Terrific; all I need is a mask and a black cape, and this would all work out. The princess, the snot-nosed son, and the evil father. Wait, didn't I go good at the end of this movie?"

Connor moved closer to Buffy, grabbing the broadsword out of her hands. "Well, I won't tell if you won't," he said with a grin. "Ready for round three, old man?"

Angelus sighed. "You know, maybe I should go good. It worked for Spike, right? Maybe I should promise not to kill humans and just dote on Buffy forever and ever." As he finished saying this his face morphed into its demonic visage. "Or, maybe I should just kill you."

He charged forward, straight at Buffy. She kicked him, spinning around and sending him flying over her shoulder. "Little trick I learned from an old friend of yours," she taunted.

Angelus climbed to his feet, scowling. "Oh, yeah, _l'Eterno_. What's the matter, couldn't find a vampire to give you that cold, cold lovin? Needed to find a substitute for your souled Aurelian lovers?"

Buffy's face darkened, and she moved forward.

Connor cut in front of her with almost impossible speed, slashing at Angelus, who dodged back.

"Careful, son, it's all fun and games till somebody puts an eye out," said Angelus, grinning. "Just ask Xander."

Connor moved forward, attacking quickly and grimly. "You know, Angelus, I'm stronger than you these days," said Connor quietly, the sword in his hand whipping through the air, making a loud whistling noise. "I took Sahjhan, something you never could do."

"Luck," mocked Angelus. "And fate. And destiny. And, hey, how you doing, Buff? Last time I saw you, you were all over the Immortal...time before that, you were all over Spike...been missing me?"

Connor punched Angelus in the face, a lightning move that sent him flying. "Hey, focus," said Connor. "She's just here for back up, in case I'm kicking your butt too much. Then she'll step in on your side." He advanced, swinging the broadsword.

Angelus spat on the ground, leaving a bloody stain. "Oh, right, like I'll need it," he growled.

Connor was faster than Angelus, and he used that speed as best he could. But Angelus was still the more powerful of the two, and with a few more tricks up his sleeve. As they fought Connor was forced back again and again.

Then Buffy entered the fray, throwing punches that were harder than Angelus' and just as fast as Connor's. Angelus fell back, surprised.

The Slayer, however, fought silently and viciously. "Little bottled up rage thing going on here, huh?" joked Angelus, punching her in the face. She staggered back, but silently approached him again.

Connor impaled Angelus then, slamming the sword into his chest. Angelus laughed, punching his son away from him. "Even Spike's done that!" he said, laughing. "Lindsey, too!"

Connor whipped out a remote control. "Yeah, but I bet neither of them bothered to implant a taser in their sword handle first," he said, grinning.

The electric shock blew Angelus off his feet, the loud snap echoing through the air. Angelus crumpled to the ground, the sword hitting the pavement and making a loud clicking noise.

Buffy wrinkled her nose against the smell of burnt flesh. "Ew. You had a taser in there?"

"One of Spike's crazy ideas," said Connor, slowly moving closer to the big vampire. "And, yes, he's down." He hoisted the unconscious vampire onto his back. "Let's go; Lorne has the cage ready, and the drugs we're going to need to keep him docile."

"Terrific," said Buffy. "I thought you said his soul was destroyed!"

"Well, yeah, but he's still my dad," replied Connor.

Buffy shook her head. "No!" she said. "Your dad..." She glared at the boy for a minute, following him. "We're going to get into one of those long, boring, philosophical discussions about souls, aren't we?"

"Nope!" said Connor. "Firstly, we don't have time. He'll be waking up soon. Secondly, I really don't care about your hang-ups. This is my dad we're talking about. I'm not giving up on him. Thirdly, this is all part of the master plan."

"Master plan?" asked Buffy.

"Well, sure," said Connor. "Spike's master plan."

"Spike's. Master plan," repeated Buffy, the words sour on her lips. "You know what, that's messed up. Totally messed up."

"Why?" asked Connor. "Because he's not allowed to have plans like you have?" There was a slight edge to his voice, but Buffy ignored it.

"Because Spike's plans never turn out well," said Buffy. "And because... because this is all wrong! We can't get his soul back, but we're going to just tie him up and drug him? This is Angelus! Angel would have wanted us to stake him."

"Yes, he would have," replied Connor. He glanced back at Buffy, smiling. "But that's not the point, not any more."

Buffy continued following the super-powered teen, shaking her head. "This is why it's always a bad idea for Spike to have plans," she pointed out. "I end up confused, and I don't understand what's going on, and I'm pretty sure that you're not telling me everything. Why are we keeping Angelus alive? We defeated him! Pretty easily, too."

"That's because I've been training with Spike for this day," said Connor, a hint of grimness in his voice. "We didn't set about this lightly. We knew what we were doing."

"What were you doing?!" demanded Buffy.

"Getting ready," replied Connor.

--

Spike marched through the lower levels of the dungeon, an axe in each hand. Faith trailed behind him, carrying a broadsword she'd taken from a large, horned demon. "This is ridiculous," she muttered.

Spike turned a corner, encountering another demon. It gave a squeal of surprise, and reached for a weapon. Before its hand could get there Spike lopped the hand off with a long overhand swing, then lopped the head off the demon.

"Maybe," he agreed. "But I know they're here somewhere."

"How will you know which ones are the ones in charge?" asked Faith.

Spike shrugged. "They're the Senior partners, ain't they? I'll know em. If nothing else the stench of evil ought to give them away." He continued marching onward, and Faith practically had to run to keep up with him.

It was getting even harder to hate him. The stunt he'd pulled outside, forcing her to confront herself, had been downright therapeutic--even if it was cold and manipulative. And his brash manner, she was beginning to see, hid a soul as bruised and bleeding as her own.

And that sounded more like something a poet would say. She pushed the thought aside angrily, focusing on Spike.

As annoying and arrogant as he was, she was starting to understand why Buffy had been so attached to the vampire. At the time she had more or less ignored it, not understanding it at all, or assuming it was all about hot vampire lovin.

Now she was beginning to see how Spike's single-minded focus could be more than just an annoying tendency to stick up for Buffy when the whole house was kicking her out, more than just a tendency to start hitting people when Buffy wasn't getting her way.

Spike was like a bulldog. He wouldn't let go of this idea of killing the demons responsible for Angel's death, even though Faith knew he hated the older vampire. The peroxide blonde also seemed to be going even more crazy than before, becoming agitated and...violent.

That was actually turning Faith on a little, truth be told.

Faith scowled, pushing that thought aside too. That was definitely of the bad.

Spike continued marching through the dimly lit stone passages, glancing back at Faith once. His features were fixed in a dark scowl, and for a moment she wondered just how much demon there was left in him.

A tall demon with long, white hair and tan skin stepped out from behind a pillar, scowling at Spike. "William?" he asked, surprised. "You're ahead of schedule!" accused the demon.

Spike advanced on him menacingly. "Where're the Senior Partners?" he demanded.

The tall demon paled. "What?" he asked, his chalky skin turning a pale, pasty white. "Uh, William, I don't know how you think this is supposed to work, but you're not the one with the power here."

Spike buried one axe in the demon's head. "Wrong answer!" he snarled.

A door opened, and another demon, nearly identical to the one Spike had just killed poked his head out. His face also turned a peculiar shade of white. "William the Bloody?" he asked, gaping.

Spike wrenched the axe free, letting the body of the demon fall to the ground. "It's go-time, kiddo!" he snarled. "Where's the Senior Partners?"

"Uh, you just killed one," said the demon nervously. "Don't we have armies of demons to keep your kind out?"

"You did!" snarled Spike. "Till you sent them to earth to destroy Angel." He advanced on the Senior Partner, lifting both axes to shoulder level. "Now, you know what I'm after. Take me there!"

"This is about the rain of fire, isn't it?" quavered the demon. "Look, can we make a deal?"

"No!" snapped Spike. "I've had quite enough dealing with the devil for one lifetime, all right? You take me to him, you might make it out of here alive!"

The pale demon whimpered. Spike moved closer, resting the axe on the demon's shoulder, glaring at him. "I'm going to tear this place apart!" he hissed. "I'll find him! The only question for you is, will you still be in one piece when we find him?"

The demon shook his head. "There are rules," he whispered. "And none of us is going to help you—agh!"

Spike pushed the axe harder against the demon's collarbone, snapping it. "Where is he?!" he snarled.

"Down that passage, take a right!" moaned the demon. Spike summarily chopped his head off, turning and rushing down the passage.

Faith followed him, glancing at the corpse. "Messy," she commented.

"Come on!" said Spike, hurrying. "They must have a few guards left somewhere."

Faith followed him, shaking her head. She could still hear the fireballs hitting the ground outside, a rumbling that shook the whole dimension. "What's the rush?" she asked.

"The spell I cast is going to destroy this whole plane of existence!" growled Spike. "And I can't reverse it! So we have to find what we're looking for and get out of here, and fast!"

Faith sighed, following him. As they started down a flight of stairs Spike let out a yelp, falling sideways to the ground as it shook under, plummeting several yards to crash to the ground.

He rolled upright instantly, holding one axe in a two-handed grip. "Come on!" he yelled.

Faith jumped down beside him, following as he darted down a passageway. At the end was a large, circular room with a chair in the middle, surrounded by pale demons like the ones above. The chair faced away from them, but she could see a tray filled with torture implements beside it, and hands dangling from the sides, tied to the chair.

"Get them!" yelled Spike, jumping forward and attacking. These pale demons responded by attacking them, drawing knives and other weapons.

Faith darted forward, swinging the sword wildly, hacking at the demons as they tried to swarm Spike. "Get off!" she yelled, kicking one across the room.

"Kill the prisoner!" squeaked the one she'd kicked, toppling to the ground.

"NO!" roared Spike, killing three with one sweep of his axe. "Slayer! Take them!"

Several of the demons darted towards the center of the room, weapons raised.

Faith ran forward, jumping up onto the chair, which was pointed away from her. She landed in the lap of the prisoner, blocking blows from the demons with her sword, slashing at them and driving them back.

Spike roared, leaping forward and attacking them, using the window of opportunity that Faith had given him. She watched in awe as he finished off the remaining demons with frenzied movements, his axe flying through the air.

He stopped when the demons all lay still on the floor, breathing heavily. He glanced to Faith, who was still straddling the prone prisoner. "Right, then, I'll open the passage out of here, before it all blows up," said Spike shortly, dropping the axe and grabbing a book out of one of his duster pockets.

Faith sighed, standing up and looking back at the prisoner.

She froze, staring down at Angel. He was looking back at her through eyes filled with pain, and an odd expression of hope.

"Angel?" she asked, surprised.

"Faith?" he croaked, his voice unsteady.

Spike moved to Angel's side, producing a knife and sawing at the bonds around Angel's wrists. "Well, ain't this a pickle?" he asked.

"Don't!" rasped Angel. "The chair anchors me...without it..."

"Don't worry, Liam," sneered Spike. "Came all prepared and everything, dinn't we?" Spike glanced up at Faith, who was still frozen, staring at Angel. "What?" he snapped, angrily. "Take the books, start putting together a pentagram so we can break out of here."

Faith nodded, still not believing her eyes. "It's Angel..." she whispered.

"Yeah, too right," snorted Spike. "Hey, git, you ready to go?"

Faith turned away, blinking.


	11. To hell and Back

Disclaimer: I don't own a thing.

Summary: Post AtS and BtVS, Faith and Xander are approached by a secret government agency. Surprises all around.

Rating: PG-13

Chapter 11: To hell and back

Faith glared at Spike. "You told me he'd been destroyed!"

"He was destroyed," replied Spike distractedly, finishing up the pentagram and flipping a book open. "His soul was burned clean out of his body and sent to hell while the demon was left on earth to roam free. If that's not destroyed, I don't know what is." Spike began chanting, and Faith turned back to Angel, who lay on the chair staring at them.

"He's just a soul?" she asked. "He looks...he felt more solid than just a soul."

"The chair..." groaned Angel. Faith's eyes swept over his body, naked except for a torn pair of jeans. His skin was pale as ever, but pocked and torn. His face was black and blue from blows sustained, and his eyes spoke of unimaginable pain.

She moved closer, touching his face in the only place that didn't have bruises. "It'll be okay," she promised softly. She glanced back at Spike. "Why didn't you tell Buffy?" she asked.

"I didn't know!" snapped Spike. "I'd just been dead when I went to her, all right? It wasn't till after, when Connor and I found Angelus and tried to resoul him, that we found out something was off. Anyway, she wouldn't even believe me that what we were doing in LA, Angel and I, was good."

"Was it good?" asked Faith sharply.

Spike shrugged. "Look what they've done to him for doing it!" he snapped. "All right, Angel, time to go."

"The chair..." rasped Angel. "I'll die without it."

Spike reached into a pocket, bringing out a transparent orb. "I'm really thinking not, you know," he said casually. Then he began chanting again.

Even as a red portal erupted open behind him, Angel exploded in front of him, shimmering into a thousand small points of light that rushed into the orb.

Faith stared. "Whoa," she said, her voice reverent.

"Through the portal, Slayer!" snapped Spike.

Faith dove through, with Spike hot behind her.

--

Sarah finished tying the IV above Angelus, while Connor finished chaining him down. "That ought to hold," said Connor dubiously.

Buffy watched, grimacing at the reminder of the times she'd chained Spike up. Unpleasant memories swirled thickly through the air, and she wondered if when she saw Spike again he'd start dredging it up.

She'd seen him for far too brief a time to even begin to think about the deep issues they had lying between them, and now she was staring at the other vampire who had caused her so much pain in her life.

At times like these, she wondered if maybe Faith's way wasn't smarter. Bang em, and get away from them before they can hurt you. The one time Faith had tried to deviate from the pattern, with Robin Wood, she'd ended up getting hurt.

That didn't surprise Buffy at all.

Buffy's stayed with the Immortal because he was a light fling, somebody who didn't take it seriously. A Parker, a Faith, someone who wasn't looking for eternity.

Buffy wasn't sure she believed in eternity any more. Not after all the crap she'd been through.

Connor stepped back. "When he wakes up, stay upstairs," he told both girls.

"What?" said Buffy.

"Hey!" yelled Sarah.

"He's dangerous, Sar," said Connor. "Very dangerous. Last time this happened, he escaped. And he killed. I don't want to see anything happening to you."

"I've faced Angelus before!" said Buffy angrily.

"Yeah, me too," said Connor. "This time, only Spike will deal with him. Not you, not me, and definitely not Sar."

"Oh, yeah, because Angel and Spike get on just fine!" snorted Buffy.

Connor made a face. "Things change," he advised.

"Not some things," objected Buffy. "Not Spike and Angel things."

Connor shrugged. "I'll take your word for it, I guess. I've never really actually seen the two of them together, except when we fought Angelus together—and that was weird."

"Weird?"

"Yeah, weird," said Connor. "I mean, Angelus was just dying to fight him, but Spike didn't really want to fight...and Spike always wants to fight."

"Tell me about it," muttered Buffy. "So, any chance I could call my friends, tell them about this?"

Connor glanced at her, surprised. "Not for another eight hours," he said, glancing at his watch. "It'll be over by then."

"What will?" demanded Buffy.

Lorne appeared at the top of the stairs before Connor could reply. "I have a bogey," he reported happily. "It looks like blondie bear is reentering orbit!"

"Blondie bear?" asked Buffy, confused.

"Spike," said Connor, hurrying up the stairs, Sarah right behind him. "Get the rest of the equipment ready, we've got to do this fast, before any more operatives can find us."

Lorne grinned. "All spell equipment is ready to roll, and then you guys can finally get off my doorstep. Hey, is that leather pants he's wearing?"

Connor brushed by him, followed by Sarah and Buffy. "Spike's back?" asked Buffy.

"He'll come out right where we did," said Connor shortly. "It should take a few minutes for him to show up."

"Is Faith with him?" asked Buffy.

"No way of knowing," apologized the green-skinned demon beside her. "But the spell we got ready to bring him home was used."

Then the door leading outside was slammed open, and Spike ran through, Faith on his heels. "Got it!" he yelled.

Buffy jumped, staring at them both. "Faith!" she said, surprised.

Faith glowered at Spike, huffing and panting as if they'd run all the way from the portal. "Idiot," she gasped, leaning over and putting her hands on her knees.

Buffy crossed to Faith's side, putting a hand on her back. "You okay?" she asked quietly.

"That vampire of yours, he's a great psychiatrist," cracked Faith. "Terrific, really."

Connor took a glowing orb from Spike. "Great!" he said, his face lighting up. "How'd it go?"

Spike shrugged. "They were weaker than I'd thought," he said darkly.

"Crap!" said Connor, his face darkening.

"Crap? Why crap?" asked Buffy. "Weak is good, isn't it?"

"That means most of their army is still here on earth, looking for us," said Connor. "With two interdimensional rifts in a row, in the same place, they're going to be all over us very soon." He glanced to Spike, who took a deep breath.

"You got him?" he asked.

"Downstairs," replied Connor. "Drugged to the gills. Lorne and I will get right on top of the magic. You ready to do your thing?"

Spike took a deep breath, taking his duster off and tossing it on top of a chair. "You gotta keep the Slayers up here. They're not going to like this part," he said roughly, turning and heading for the stairs.

Buffy moved fast, cutting him off. "Whoa!" she said, her face twitching as she came face to face with him. "What are we not going to like?"

Faith was upright too, following Buffy. "Yeah," she said simply, her voice hoarse.

Connor moved closer. "Look, it's got to be done, and we're going to do it. You can fight us if you want to, but you can't win, not against both of us."

"I beg to differ," said Buffy sharply. She glared at Connor. "You're strong, and you're fast, but I beat Angelus, back in the day, and I can take you, too."

Connor stared at her, thinking about it. "Okay, maybe," he allowed. "Lorne?"

Lorne sighed, moving forward with a fake smile on his face. "All right, girls, why don't we all go downstairs and say hi to our guest? And then Spike will start the show, and I'll explain the difficult bits, and maybe we can get this all done before the army of demons arrives, and I can get out of here before we all die."

Buffy glared at him. "But we aren't going to like it?" she asked.

"I can explain," said Lorne smoothly. "It's a lengthy explanation, one that...well, you'll have to see it first."

Spike took a deep breath, stepping around Buffy. "Not like it's my idea, not this time!" he growled, stumbling down the steps. At the bottom he leaned over, snagging a knife out of a cardboard box, along with a book.

Buffy stared at Angelus as she followed Spike, Faith close behind her. "Spike, what are you—?" Her question was cut off when he slashed the knife across Angelus' chest, waking the older vampire up.

Angelus gave a roar of anger, pulling against his chains.

"Hello, gramps," said Spike with satisfaction. "Time to play."

Buffy started forward, her hands forming into fists. Lorne darted in front of her, and for a moment his horns and green skin almost got him Slayed.

"Now, this part is absolutely necessary for the spell!" said Lorne nervously and loudly, stepping back, clearly getting some of those Slayer vibes. "The spell won't work without the pattern of cuts on his chest!"

"What spell?!" growled Faith angrily, staring at the demon.

Spike glanced back at her. "Duh," he said angrily. "You just saw me collect his soul."

"Angel's soul? Connor said it was destroyed?" said Buffy, confused.

"Burned out and sent to hell," said Spike shortly, slashing another precise line across Angelus' chest.

"Willie, don't do this!" begged Angelus. "Please, just stake me! Not this, not again!"

"Yes, again!" snarled Spike angrily. He glanced back at Faith and Buffy. "Either of you think you can do a better job, you're welcome to it!" he snarled. Then he made another cut.

"You're trying to resoul Angel," said Faith, her voice suddenly very soft. Buffy stared down at Spike, remembering how he'd drawn the picture of Angel to tape over the punching bag to hit.

"Imagine that," chuckled Spike.

Connor came down the stairs, carrying a box. "The candles are burning, but I think we're running out of time!" he said urgently.

"Where's Sarah?" asked Spike.

"I sent her back home," said Connor shortly. "She's gone. Spike, finish it up!"

Spike began methodically carving into the older vampire, and Buffy felt Faith go rigid beside her. Connor continued, emptying his box and beginning to put together spell ingredients.

"Lorne, I'm lost," said the teenager. "You still have those witches on speed dial?"

"I got it," said Lorne uneasily.

Angelus howled, pulling against his chains. "You can't do this!" he screamed.

Spike gagged him with a rag. "I've got it done," he said shortly, finishing the design with a series of short strokes. "Do we have any good news yet?"

Lorne began chanting, a melodic chant. Connor looked up at the Slayers, both of whom were staring at Angelus tensely.

Spike turned around, facing the Slayers, and threw the knife to the ground. "Phone," he said shortly. Connor tossed him a cell phone, which he opened quickly, dialing. "Soldier-boy? Yeah, Spike. Oh, they said that? I have Buffy and Faith here, and an army of demons on the way. You traced the call yet? Good, get your army butts down here. And you can kill me yourself if you think I deserve it."

He glanced to Buffy and Faith, dropping the phone without bothering to turn it off. "Happy now?" he asked sarcastically.

"A long way from it," said Faith shortly.

"But getting there," said Buffy quietly. "How long has this been going on? Why didn't you tell me about this, Spike?"

Spike set his jaw. "Because you wouldn't help before!" he snapped.

"You wouldn't even tell me what you'd been doing in LA, or how long you'd been there!" yelled Buffy. "You lied to me at least once!"

"He lied?" asked Faith.

"He said he didn't know I was in Italy, or how to get in touch with me, and that's why he hadn't called. But Andrew told me...you knew where I was, you even came to my house once!" Buffy spat.

Spike reeled backwards, as he'd been hit. "You...you knew? Andrew told you?" he asked, his voice pathetic.

"Of course Andrew told me!" Buffy seethed. "You lied to me when you claimed to be coming to me for help, and you want me to just trust you about your association with an evil company of lawyers?"

"I never said just trust..." said Spike softly.

"But you never told me anything about it!" snarled Buffy. "Not one word, Spike! I asked, and I asked, and I asked! I was ready to trust you, Spike! I was ready to help you! But you wouldn't talk about it!"

"It was hell!" yelled Spike.

Connor moved in front of Spike. "Stop it. Now," he ordered, turning his back on the ex-vampire to face the two Slayers. "Both of you, knock it off. There'll be time to argue and fight later. There's an army of demons out there hunting for Spike, and now they're after dad too. They'll find us, sooner than later, and I want to be finished this before they're back."

Lorne finished chanting, and Angelus began to glow. He screamed, rocking back and forth against the chains holding, the cuts across his chest glowing with a red light, the blood dripping down his chest sizzling against him.

"What are you doing to him?!" demanded Faith, stepping forward.

"Something permanent," snarled Spike.

Lorne got up. "Well, the rest doesn't need a lot of supervision," he said nervously. "Ciao." He practically ran up the stairs, and a moment later the door slammed as he made his retreat.

Connor sighed, turning back to Angelus. "How're you doing?" he asked.

"It hurts!" snapped Angelus. "How does it look like I'm doing? I'm on fire, and you're—oh, God!"

His head snapped back, and he began gasping for air.

"Unchain im," said Spike.

"What?" said Connor.

"It's nearly over," said Spike. "I know this bit."

Angelus' head snapped forward, and his face transformed into his demonic visage. "Spike..." he groaned.

"And, that's mister grumpy," grumbled Spike. "All souled up. Come on, unchain him."

Connor hesitated. "Are you sure?" he asked.

Angel slowly transformed back into human face, gazing up at Connor and Spike with a bittersweet glare. "You got me back," he whispered.

"Yeah, how about that?" asked Spike. "You can thank us later. Unchain him! They're coming!"

Then Buffy heard a noise at the top of the stairs and turned, looking up. A demon stood there, all red skin, scales, horns and claws. "They're down here!" he bellowed.

Connor grabbed Angel's chains, searching for the lock. "Who's got the key?" he asked.

"I don't have it," grumbled Spike, staring at the demon at the top of the stairs. "All right, Slayers. I hope you came armed."

The demon launched itself down the stairs, but Faith was ready and kicked it back, staggering back from the impact, while Buffy launched herself at its head, swinging at it with a well-aimed kick that sent the huge demon staggering back.

Connor shook his head, pulling at the chains and kicking the IV away from Angel. "And we've drugged him!" he complained.

Spike advanced to the foot of the stairs, where more demons were coming down, greeting them with a frenetic attack, arms and legs swirling in violent motions.

Buffy and Faith continued to tag team the first demon, Buffy finally getting it in a headlock and snapping its neck before turning and running at the demons swarming down the stairs.

Connor managed to break a link in the chains, pulling Angel free and leaping up, over Spike and Buffy's head, landing among the other demons and spinning into action.

Faith moved to Angel's side. "Hey, big guy," she said as he struggled to his feet.

"I don't feel so good," he admitted, still a bit dizzy.

She turned and smashed a fist into the face of a demon that had been approaching them. "Yeah, you look even worse," she said. "So, I heard you'd gone all evil and stuff. What's up with that?"

Angel managed a glare, leaning back against the wall. "Did...not."

"I thought he'd gone," snarled Spike, dodging back out of the fray. "Taking up with the lawyers, taking up with the bloody Circle of the Black Thorn. Turns out he was good the whole time, and put an end to the biggest circle of baddies ever! Of course, I finished the Senior Partners."

"You what?" asked Angel.

"Burned their dimension to ashes!" hissed Spike. "Tell me that's not fun, eh?"

"Fun?" demanded Angel, irked by this.

Buffy glanced back, not surprised to see them arguing.

"Oh, come on, old man!" said Spike. "I did what you wanted, didn't I?"

Angel sighed, nodding. "Thanks, Spike," he said finally. "Although I really could have done without the drugs."

Spike snorted, shaking his head. "Yeah, but Angelus is a right prick, and I didn't want to deal with it," he replied. He moved forward, grabbing Angel by the shoulder. "Hey, time to get out here."

He moved towards the stairs, helping Angel stand. Buffy glanced back, and froze at the sight of Spike moving forward, Angel's arm over his shoulder. It was one of the most unexpected and unnatural things she'd ever seen.

"Clear the stairs!" yelled Spike, and Faith charged forward, past Buffy, and began kicking the demons off the stairs.

Spike snagged his duster on the way to the stairs, while Connor and the Slayers pushed the fight back up the stairs and into the rest of the house.

That's when the sound of automatic weapon fire filled the small house. "Soldiers are here!" reported Connor, falling back. "Yo, Slayers! Try to make sure they don't shoot us, huh? That's just unpleasant."

Angel groaned as Riley Finn appeared at the head of the stairs. "Of all the people to rescue me, it had to be Riley and Spike," he groaned. "This feels a lot more like hell than hell did."

Spike snorted at the confused look on Riley's face. "I told you I was gonna rock the place," he said.

Riley shook his head. "I found them!" he yelled. "In the basement!"

Xander moved up behind Riley, holding a rifle. "Spike? Angelus?" he said. "Buffy! Faith! That's Angelus, not Angel! And we couldn't put his soul back in!" He leveled the rifle at Angel, whose eyes widened.

"Calm down!" said Faith, moving in front of Angel. "It's okay, Xander. Spike got his soul back."

Xander shook his head. "What?" he asked, confused.

Buffy hurled another demon to the ground, glowering at everybody there. "Are there more demons outside?" she asked.

"We have Slayers and soldiers dealing with it," replied Xander, slowly lowering his rifle. "He's...I can't deal with this. Can anybody else deal with this?" Nobody answered him. "Fine. Great. Riley, can we get out of here now? I'd like to debrief my Slayer."

"Your Slayer?" asked Angel weakly. "What?"

"He's my Watcher," said Faith. Angel turned his head, staring at her.

"He's your...Watcher?" he repeated, baffled. "I guess...things have really changed, huh?"

Xander shrugged. "Can we go?"

Connor shook his head, moving to the top of the stairs. "Let's just get one thing straight. We're not prisoners, we're not bad guys, and we're not going to be pushed around. Spike and I have worked with you, and if you want to just drag us away..." He glared around the room. "Well, between the three of us, we can take you all."

Angel lifted his eyebrows. "Uh, I'm convinced," he said weakly.

Xander scowled at him. "You know what? Screw you. You can stay here for all I care." He glanced to Buffy, a bit uncertainly.

Buffy sighed, glancing to Faith. "Is the demon army gone?" she asked Riley, turning.

"Um, yes," he replied.

"Can we have a minute?" she asked, pleading with him with her eyes, trying to will him to walk away.

Riley frowned. "This is...okay. Yeah, sure."

Xander frowned, handing his rifle to Riley. "I want to be here for this," he said shortly.

"Xander..." Buffy started, but Faith put a hand on her arm.

"Okay," said Faith.

Riley moved back. "I'll just...tell the others," he said lamely, moving away.

Xander shifted nervously. Faith turned back to him. "Why are you here?" she asked.

"When Riley said what he'd heard...I thought you might be here. Might be back," said Xander quickly. "And, you know..."

"I know," said Faith, turning back to Spike and Angel. "And I'm also really ready for an explanation."

Spike scowled back at her, tightening his grip around Angel's waist.


	12. Does anybody ever explain?

Disclaimer: I don't own a thing.

Summary: Post AtS and BtVS, Faith and Xander are approached by a secret government agency. Surprises all around.

Rating: PG-13

Chapter 12: Does anybody ever explain

Faith glanced to Xander, who glared back at her, nonplussed. "Can I ask a few questions?" he asked.

Connor glanced from the Slayers to the Watcher. "Uh, maybe I should answer the questions," he offered. "Dad's still a little drugged, and Spike's...incoherent."

"I can be bloody coherent," snarled Spike.

"And evil," replied Xander. "Can we talk about that for a minute? I mean, not too long back you were telling me he was evil, Buff. So don't give me that look! I mean, he's evil, he's not evil—I'm just asking for a little clarity here!"

Spike gave a long-suffering sigh, and Angel carefully pushed himself away from Spike. "Buffy...before we go on any further, I need to say some things," he said quietly.

"No, you don't!" snarled Spike, grabbing Angel and pulling him back. "I get to go first, you bloody pillock!"

"Spike!" snapped Angel. "This isn't about—!"

Spike punched Angel, rocking him back, then turned to Buffy. "Listen, Slayer, I think you ought to know that—!" Faith darted forward, punching Spike.

"Don't punch Angel!" she snapped as he rocked backward.

Xander rolled his eye. "I thought it was my turn to ask questions?" he complained.

Buffy shook her head. "Guys! It was Xander's turn."

Spike and Angel stepped back, both holding their noses with an aggrieved look on their faces.

"It's obvious the dead squad isn't going to answer my questions," groused Xander, turning to Connor.

"Spike's not dead," said Faith.

"What? Of course he is. He's a vampire," said Xander.

Connor shook his head. "He used to be a vampire," he said quickly. "Now he's human. Ask your questions, I don't like it here. There are bigger armies of demons out there."

"Bigger armies...?" asked Xander. "Whatever. You got Angel's soul back?" Connor nodded. "And that was your plan all along?"

"Ever since the spell to put it back didn't work," corrected Connor.

"Right," said Xander. "So, try this one on for size; wasn't Angel a bad guy? Didn't he end the chance for world peace?"

Connor grimaced. "Actually, I did that one," he confessed. "And she was my daughter. And it was evil peace."

Xander stared at him. "Your...daughter. Evil peace," he repeated dubiously, blinking his single eye several times.

Connor shrugged. "Listen, Spike and I...I can't really speak for dad, but Spike and I are really good guys. White hats. Some of what we do, like threatening Lorne and destroying whole dimensions, may seem bad. But it's all for a good cause." He glanced at Spike, who took a deep breath, dropping his hand.

"All right, let's just get the hard part over with, then," he said, spreading his arms wide. "I stole Angel's shanshu and turned human. I destroyed a hell dimension. I'll go to your little prison, let you lock me in a cage, if that's what you want, because I won the battle I was fighting." He moved closer, glaring at Xander. "You hearing me, whelp? War's over. I won."

Xander licked his lips, glancing to Faith. "What's your verdict?" he asked.

"You're asking me?" she asked, glaring at him. "You know how I feel about Angel!"

"I wasn't asking about Angel. I was asking about Spike," he replied calmly. "You think he's buggering nuts, or what? Come on, Faith, I'm drowning here!"

She took half a step back, uncomfortable with the position he'd put her in. "He's saner than I thought," she finally allowed.

Xander nodded. "Okay, that's what I needed to hear. Thanks." He turned around and started to walk away.

"That's it?" asked Buffy.

Xander whirled back around. "What else do you want?" he snapped. "I don't understand why you're okay with this, I don't understand why any of this is all right, I don't understand why Angel and Spike are good now when a minute ago they were bad—but you get, you always get it! So just do what you have to."

He turned to walk away again, and Faith growled low in her throat. "Don't you dare!" she whispered fiercely.

He turned back, glaring at her with his good eye. "Don't I dare? Don't I dare?" he demanded. "Go back to your vampires. I'll be busy being a good little Watcher."

He stalked away.

Buffy shifted uneasily. "Okay, um...Giles made a list up. Of all the evil things you've done."

Angel shifted, leaning against the wall. "I live in shadows," he said. Everybody turned to look at him. "Was it wrong to let Darla and Dru eat all those humans? Maybe. But they were more evil than Darla and Dru. Was it wrong to kill Jasmine? Maybe. But she was eating humans, Buffy! Eating them! Was it wrong to try to help my son? Maybe. But he's my son. It's all shades of grey, and I've done things I knew was wrong...but things I'd do again. Was it wrong to rewrite all my friends' memories? Yes, but ... he's my son, Buffy. And I'd do it again."

Buffy swallowed, glancing to Spike. "And, and, you worked for Wolfram and Hart," she said quietly.

"We destroyed Wolfram and Hart," sneered Spike. "Step by step, piece by piece, and they'll never clean the mess up! Never!"

Connor nodded. "It was for good. I know it looked back, but it was for good!" he insisted.

Faith sighed. "Can we...can we have this argument later?" she asked.

Angel was staring at Spike and Connor, disbelief in his eyes. "You two...you two teamed up to destroy Wolfram and Hart?" he asked, his voice trembling a little. Buffy looked at him sharply, and was surprised to see tears glimmering in his eyes. "You two...oh, god, now I'm going to cry!" He pressed his hands to his face.

"You're such a girl," teased Connor. "Yeah, family legacy, you might say. Besides, we're champions. That's what we do."

"Gah!" said Spike, making a face. "Champions, nothing. Heroes, that's what we are."

"No, you're a champion!" said Connor.

"Hero!" snapped Spike.

Riley reentered the room. "Um, are you ready to leave? Giles and Dawn are getting anxious," he said, raising his voice to be heard.

"I guess we are," said Buffy. "They're going to have a lot to ask."

--

Spike, Angel and Connor shared the couch, sitting in the middle of the room. The walls were lined with Slayers, all staring at them with weapons at the ready.

It was tense, but Spike kept breaking into little giggle fits.

Giles frowned down at him, going down through the notebook he had in front of him. "And then you worked with Illyria, after she had consumed one of your companions?" he asked.

Spike giggled, leaning forward. "Illyria didn't mean to kill Fred," he said unsteadily. "Knox did. And we killed Knox. Well, Wesley did."

"Wesley killed a man?" asked Buffy, surprised.

"Many men," said Angel darkly. "He turned into quite a warrior of goodness...he shouldn't have died the way he did."

Giles stared at him, frankly not believing that the incompetent Watcher he'd known had been any sort of warrior for goodness. "And then Angel killed the guardian of the well of souls," he said flatly.

"Drogyn was already as good as dead," said Angel. "The Circle of the Black Thorn had him. They wanted me to kill him to prove that I would join them willingly, and the only way I could destroy them was to kill him."

"Er, yes, you mentioned this before, this so-called secret organization...which I have never heard of," said Giles, glaring at the vampire.

"What good's a secret if everybody knows it?" asked Spike, giggling again.

Giles sighed, examining his list. "I don't think I have any more questions..." he sighed.

"So what's the verdict?" asked Connor tensely, glancing around at all the Slayers.

Giles gazed down at him, his face softening slightly. "I really don't know," he replied. "I mean, there's a lot to digest, and, er, I need to check some of these facts."

Angel closed his eyes, leaning back. "I'm really, really hungry," he said softly. "I don't suppose you have any blood here?"

All the Slayers around them immediately took battle stances, their faces hardening. Riley, who was watching him closely, nodded. "We have some we keep for Drusilla," he said.

Angel's eyes popped open and his head swung up, and he started choking.

"Oh, how'd you think we knew how to break into hell, how to find you, and how to destroy the place?" asked Spike, patting Angel on the back with unnecessary force. "Of course we needed her!"

Angel shook his head. "Yes, please," he said to Riley, standing up.

The assembled Slayers took a step forward, and he froze. "Or, maybe I could stay here," he offered, sitting down very slowly.

"Oh, for crying out loud!" yelled Spike, jumping up. "He's harmless as a bloody chicken, folks!" He grabbed Angel by the throat, picking him up. "We filled him full of all kinds of drugs—!"

Angel shook Spike's grip off, pushing him back with a growl. "Which all seem to have worn off!" he snapped, his voice a threat.

The Slayers stepped forward again, and Connor stood.

"Dad, Spike, cool it. It's fine," he said. He turned to Riley. "Bring the blood up, huh?"

Riley picked up his radio. "Hartley, heat some blood up for our new guest and bring it up, please." He put the radio down, watching the three sitting there.

Spike sat back down with a sigh, and Angel followed after a moment, an unhappy look on his face. "Can I ask something?" asked Angel.

Giles met his gaze. "Yes, of course," he said politely.

Angel glanced at Buffy and Faith, who were flanking the Watcher, then back at the Watcher. "I don't...Andrew was spying, right? And he told you...he told you Spike and I were in Italy." Giles nodded. "Why didn't...okay, why was..." Angel trailed off, frowning.

"What the git means is, why not just confront us, beat the truth out of us?" asked Spike, giggling again.

Buffy tensed. "We weren't sure why you were there...and _l'Eterno_ knew something, but he wouldn't tell me..."

"Dear god..." muttered Angel, closing his eyes. "Spike, make her stop talking about the Immortal. I'm not just going to sit here. She starts that, I'm turning evil, I swear to god!"

The Slayers assembled shifted nervously. Faith guffawed. "Hey, B, somebody sounds jealous!" she said, laughing.

"Immortal, Immortal, bloody Immortal ponce!" spat Spike. "Mention his name again, I'll go find him and...and...probably not be chained up, blown up, or thrown in jail for tax fraud!"

"No, it'll be something new this time," sniped Angel.

Buffy gaped at them both. "You...know him?" she asked, astounded by how lame that sounded in her own ears.

Both the man and the vampire glared at her. "You could say that," said Spike snippily.

"Met a long time back," growled Angel.

A soldier opened the door, entering the room with a bag of blood. "I've got the blood for our guest," he said gruffly, handing it to Riley.

Riley moved forward, handing it to Angel. Angel stared at the blood, glancing at everybody watching him. "Uh, thanks," he said, placing it in his lap carefully.

Spike glowered at his companion, but didn't say anything, his eyes darting over the assembled Slayers in a calculating way. As his gaze slid over each one they suddenly felt very vulnerable, remembering Giles' warnings that the two vampires were the two most powerful they would ever see.

Spike stood up. "Can I go see Dru?" he asked. "She gets lonely, you know," he added as Faith gave him an odd look.

Giles stared at him, surprised by the request. "Lonely? Um, of course. Uh, if you wouldn't mind an escort...?"

Spike glared around the room at the Slayers. "Thanks, but no thanks," he said harshly. Giles' face hardened, and Spike shook his head, sighing. "If you insist...Faith? You want to come?"

Buffy gave a start at his choice, but Faith just glowered and gave a short nod.

Spike marched out of there, Faith following him.

Connor and Angel exchanged a look. "Is Spike always like that?" asked Connor.

"Well, aside from the side order of crazy, pretty much," said Angel. "Hey, I'm really proud of you, you know," he added, smiling.

"Yeah?" asked Connor. "Well, it was mostly Spike's idea...of course, without me for muscle, he'd never have gotten away with it."

"I'm also proud of you for not staking Spike," noted Angel. "That was really good of you."

Connor shrugged. "Not staking Spike was easy, given that he was human."

"Oh, yeah, right," said Angel. He blinked. "I keep forgetting that."

"Maybe because you haven't stopped to think about it," suggested Connor.

"Brood, you mean," said Angel.

"Oh, come on," said Connor, rolling his eyes. "You're okay with it, aren't you?"

"It hurts," admitted Angel. "But I guess I am okay with it."

Buffy stared at them, wondering just when Angel had learned to talk so much...and surprised at how easily he and his son talked. She felt a bit like a peeping tom, watching them talk like this.

Giles shifted, also embarrassed. "I need to...go look into these things," he said, holding up his notebook. "Er, I should be back shortly."

--

Faith watched Spike as he tried to talk to Drusilla. There was something almost touching about the way he carefully put up with her childish rants, the way he patiently explained and re-explained and explained all over again until she understood, and the way he reached out to her without fear and just touched her.

On another level it was quite, quite disturbing.

Finally Spike moved away from the soulless vampire, who watched as he left the room. He stood in the hall a moment, facing Faith, scowling at her.

"What?" she asked.

"You're giving me a look," he told her, disgust in his voice.

"Well, excuse me for not getting your big thing with the soulless wonder," she snapped. "Why'd you ask me to come with you?"

He tilted his head obnoxiously. "Because any of the other Slayers might've really freaked out when I started talking to Dru, and I'm not exactly ready to talk to Buffy yet." His scowl deepened. "Assuming that I ever am," he added quietly.

"Oh," said Faith, disappointed.

"Tired of being a second-rate Buffy substitute?" asked Spike. "Don't blame ya."

"And what do you know about it?" snapped Faith.

"Hello?" said Spike, surprised she even had to ask. "The second vampire in Buffy's pants? The second vampire with the a soul? The second vampire in Dru's pants? The never-quite-measuring up vamp who treated Buffy worse than Angel did? The vampire that makes even Xander long for the days of Angel? I know a bit about not quite measuring up, ya know."

She scowled at him. "Okay, I'll grant you've seen some of that," she finally said. She fished around in her pockets for a cigarette. "Got a light?" she asked.

He scowled. "Bloody women," he said shortly. He tossed her his lighter, and she caught it, finally finding a cigarette and lighting it, taking a deep drag.

Spike took the lighter back from her with a lightning quick move, stuffing it back in his pocket. "I could use a drink," he muttered.

"Good to see you haven't gone all soft," she mocked.

He glared at her. "Don't give me that. In a battle of the wits, I would totally trash you," he said.

She shrugged, following him as he stalked towards a functional kitchen, searching for liquor. "You guys really blew Xander's mind," she noted.

Spike sighed, rubbing his face. "You're well and truly stuck on him," he said shortly.

She shrugged, taking the glass he offered her and holding it while he poured in a sweet-smelling watery wine he'd managed to find. "I don't know," she admitted. "I've been kind of stuck on him a long time, since I tried to kill him at least. I wanted him too much then, I liked him enough that I had to do something...and the place I was in, killing him seemed like the best solution."

Spike jumped up onto the counter, sitting there and drinking the wine, making a face at the taste. "And now he's your Watcher," he noted. "Whose idea was that?"

"Giles' idea," admitted Faith. "He came and twisted my arm till I said yes."

Spike nodded. "Sounds like him," he noted, gulping down more wine. "Ugh, this stuff is awful!" he snarled.

Faith shrugged, taking a mouthful out of her cup, swallowing as quickly as she could. "I doubt there's even enough here to get us drunk," she complained.

"Just as well," said Spike darkly. "Get too drunk around here, someone's liable to forget I'm human now and try to stake me."

"I ever tell you about the time I staked a human?" asked Faith.

Spike chuckled. "You staked a human? I guess we do have more in common than I thought. Although I used a railroad spike, and it was through the head...but, hey, you know how it is. Get turned, unleash mayhem on the small-minded idiots who've mocked you..."

"I do know," said Faith soberly. "That's what I did when I found out I was a Slayer."

Spike peered at her from beneath scowling brows. "Makes sense," he muttered. "Wrong, but it makes sense."

"Oh, now you're a guiding moral compass?" asked Faith, mocking him.

He scowled at her. "I'll have you know I was Angel's guiding moral compass, as you put it, for a good while," he said. "Ol' broody was off the straight and narrow when I showed up in LA, needed a good kick in the pants to get going."

"And...you gave it to him," said Faith, her tone ranging from dubious to incredulous.

"I gave him several!" said Spike with a grin. "But he did need at least one of them. And then his dead bint showed up once, helped out...that was good, we were double-teaming him, one of us for each cheek, pow, pow!" He made punching motions with his hands. "And we got him all turned around straight again."

"Uh-huh," said Faith, cracking a smile at the thought. "So you're Jiminy Cricket, huh?"

"In the flesh," said Spike with a grin, taking a swig of the cheap wine straight out of the bottle. "Hey, you remember when we first fought?"

"You mean when B was doing her whole gone routine, and the sit's wanted me to lead them?" asked Faith.

"Yeah," said Spike, smirking. "That was a good scene. I was there all white-knight-y, coming in on the side of my girl... and you can definitely dish it out."

"Yeah? I so totally won that fight," said Faith, nodding.

"Nuh-uh," said Spike. "I was far and away the winner."

"You lost!" said Faith, surprised to hear his version.

"No way, luv," said Spike, wrinkling his nose.

Xander walked in the kitchen and stopped short, seeing the two of them. "Oh, great," he said, crossing the refrigerator and grabbing a sandwich out of the back.

Spike glared at him, standing up. "Right, then, I need to go find Buffy. Tell her a thing or two. I'm off." He stalked away, leaving Faith and Xander alone.


	13. The big talk

Disclaimer: I don't own a thing.

Summary: Post AtS and BtVS, Faith and Xander are approached by a secret government agency. Surprises all around.

Rating: PG-13

Chapter 13: The Big Talk

Faith glowered at Xander, who continued to eat his sandwich, not looking at her.

Xander swallowed, contemplating his sandwich. "Would you do me a really big favor?" he asked her.

"What?" she asked.

"If you start sleeping with Spike...don't tell me," he said, disgust in his voice.

She coughed, staring at him with disbelief in her eyes. "Don't tell you?" she asked, her voice rising.

He turned slightly to view her with his one eye, glaring at her. "I don't want to know," he said brusquely, standing up to leave.

She glowered at him. "Yeah, cuz you certainly didn't sleep with any demons, ever," she snapped, anger in her voice.

He rolled his eyes. "Oh, real mature. And he's not a demon any more, either. Yay. Guilt-free sex. Not that we had any worries about the guilt, either."

She growled low in her throat. "Don't you dare start judging me!" she snapped.

"Judge you? I don't even know you," he said dismissively. "I just don't want to hear it."

"Why do you hate him?" she asked, angry.

"Why do I hate him? Besides the time he coshed me on the head and threatened to carve my best friend up? Besides the times he's tried to kill my other best friend before my eyes? Besides the time he tried to turn me against my friends? Besides the time he chained my best friend up to declare his love for her? Besides the time he tried to rape said friend? I just don't know, Faith. I really don't know." By the time he'd reached the end of his rant his voice was dripping with sarcasm.

"And he can't change, huh? Nothing he'll ever do is good enough to change him, huh?" asked Faith.

Xander's face softened fractionally for a second. "Are we talking about him, or you?" he asked.

"Is there a difference?" she spat.

He sat back down with a sigh. "Maybe," he said grudgingly. "I certainly never hated you like I hate him, you know."

"Thanks for that," said Faith, her voice drenched with hostility.

He watched her with his one eye, his face hiding whatever thoughts were lurking behind that single eye. "I know this is hard to understand, but there are very real reasons I hate him," said Xander. "It's not like...do you think I hate you?"

She glared at him, not willing to answer the question, not willing to bat it aside as if it meant nothing to her. She couldn't think of a good lie, but she knew that in about a minute she was going to start punching him if he kept doing this, going right to the heart of her problems and her wounds.

He waited a minute for an answer, and when it became apparent she wasn't going to answer he leaned back, away from her. "I never hated you, Faith," he said, his voice different somehow. She couldn't say what exactly was coloring his voice, whether it was disappointment, regret, or even some kind of anger.

"I tried to kill you just as much as he did!" she snarled, unable to hold her anger in any longer.

"No, you tried to kill me because you were alone, hurt, scared, guilty, and running from us," said Xander. "He tried to kill me because he enjoyed killing, terrorizing, and in general being evil. He ... okay, I get that you spent some time in a hell dimension with him and came back with a freaky connection. And I don't like it, okay, but you're an adult. Do what you have to. Just don't ask me to know about it, don't ask to approve it...hell, I judge everyone!" His voice raised a little at the end, and Faith noted that he seemed to be angry. "Isn't that what they always say? Why should you be the exception?"

He stood up to leave again, leaving her simmering. She stood up, grabbing him. "So it's okay because I was **human**?" she yelled, pushing him towards the wall. His eye widened at the sudden assault. "Or because I was a girl? What is it, huh, that makes it okay?"

"I thought defending Spike was Buffy's job," said Xander nastily. "What do you want me to say? Have fun with the guy who tried to rape Buffy? Have fun with the guy I hate most in the world?"

Faith scowled at him. "And he can't change?" she repeated, coming right back to the part that bothered her the most.

"He can change," said Xander. "I can't."

Faith moved forward, grabbing Xander by the shoulders. He tensed, expecting a blow, but instead she pulled him closer, kissing him.

He froze, surprised, and she took advantage of his surprise to get closer, wrapping her arms around him and deepening the kiss, trying to lengthen it. He pulled away in surprise, trying to back away.

"Faith...what?" he managed to say, his voice strangled.

"Unless it's been that long, I think you know exactly what this is," said Faith, her voice low and husky. She tried to kiss him again, but he turned his face away.

"No, Faith," he said firmly, trying to disentangle his limbs from hers.

"Come on, what can it hurt?" she asked, holding on to him desperately, as if she were drowning.

In truth, she felt a little bit like she was drowning. The sweet, sweet torture of having been forced to see him every day, to sleep so close to him every night, had been driving her to distraction.

And then she'd discovered that being away from him was only worse.

She wanted him so bad that at times it hurt. Actually, it hurt all the time, especially since she'd known,_ she'd known_, how he would react. That she was stupid enough to try anyway only made her madder.

He managed to stop her by moving both hands to her face, cupping her head in his hands and holding it still. She froze, hoping that was a yes, of sorts.

"Faith," he said gently, meeting her eyes with his single eye, flickering back and forth from eye to eye. "I'm sorry. No. This isn't..." He trailed off, then took a deep breath. "I can't do that, can't be part of something that doesn't mean anything."

"It doesn't have to mean nothing!" said Faith.

"It did last time," said Xander. "And it will this time. You're hardly commitment girl, you know." He smiled, trying to take the edge off his words, but they still hurt.

Faith spun, pushing him away from her, towards the middle of the room, trying to push the rage away. He stumbled and nearly fell, catching the counter to hold himself steady.

She rushed out of the room, her boots clacking on the floor. He watched her go with his one eye, confused and bewildered.

"That's not usually what they do when I call them evil," he noted cautiously.

Then he shuddered at the mental image of Spike trying the same thing, and limped away towards the room he was staying in.

--

Spike wandered through the barracks, sniffing the air to try and find his way back to the library. But his sense of smell just wasn't what it used to be, and he kept wandering back into the garages.

He stopped looking the fifth time he wandered into the garages, sitting down on a motorcycle and just looking around, trying to shake the unsettling feeling that he couldn't escape the garage.

"Probably an evil garage," he muttered.

He glanced up when he heard a sound at the door, and was surprised to see Dawn stick her head in. "Hey," she said carefully. She glanced around. "Didn't expect to find you here," she said, moving in, crossing her arms.

He suddenly wished he'd kept his duster, instead of leaving it back in Lorne's hideaway. Even though it wasn't really his duster, he felt naked without it, felt defenseless.

Even if he was strong enough to break the girl in half with one hand, he still felt scared and tiny in the face of her disapproval. His arms itched to cross defensively over his chest, but instead he leaned back, even though it was so hard. He wanted to curl up in a defensive ball.

Instead he forced a smile to his face. "Lo, Dawn," he managed to say.

She crept closer, tentatively. "To hell and back, huh? I kinda expected you to be smoking."

He made a face. "Wish I were," he muttered, patting his pockets. He came up with his lighter, and began nervously flicking it open and shut.

She watched him, leaning back against the hood of a jeep. "I'm glad you're alive," she said.

He snorted. "I liked it better as a vampire," he informed her.

"I meant...I'm glad you're not dust," she corrected herself.

"Oh. Me too," he said awkwardly.

Dawn licked her lips, glancing away. "So, I hear you went through all that...to save Angel," she said.

Spike barked a nervous laugh. "S like having to crawl through sunlight to save Harris," he said contemptuously. "Although, o course, these days I can do that...sunlight..." he added, his voice even more nervous.

Dawn nodded, pushing at a ridge in the metal floor with the toe of her shoe. "Kind of heroic," she noted.

"That's me, the big hero of the day," snorted Spike. He eyed her cautiously. "Of course, it helps I stole big broody's redemption," he said, trying to remind her that he was still evil.

"Way I hear it, he gave it to you," said Dawn, a twinkle in her eye.

Spike grumbled, crossing his arms. "Stinking poofter," he grumbled. "Did I ask for this? Well, I mean, I did drink the cup of Perpetual Torment, but does that really mean he has a right to just go and concede? I could kill him, just stake him and finish it all off. I don't like being human!" The last sentence seemed to shake him up and he began scowling. "I miss my fangs," he admitted. "Nothing tastes as good as blood, not even the stuff I used to eat. I can't smell anything, not any more, my eyes are...I'm using contact lenses, Dawn! And they itch! My stupid hands are ..." He trailed off, embarrassed.

"Yeah, I get it. Not what you thought it would be," said Dawn, amused. She looked down at the floor guiltily.

Spike desperately wished he had a cigarette, for this. It was unbearably hard, remembering all of the good times and bad he'd shared with her. Remembering ignoring her once her sister had returned. Remembering how she'd threatened to kill him when she'd found out how he'd hurt her sister.

"So I guess your lot thinks my lot isn't evil, then?" he asked. She gave him a startled look. "Else you wouldn't be out here with me," he prompted.

"I don't think they know," she replied. His face fell. "But I do think they believe you...Faith believes you. I think Buffy wants to believe. Even Giles..."

Spike shook his head, and began flipping the lighter again. "So, what's the problem?" he asked.

"Problem?" she squeaked.

"Yeah, the one you want me to solve," he said brusquely. "What is it?"

"I don't...there's no problem," said Dawn slowly. "I just wanted...I was just wondering..." After a moment's silence she cleared her throat. "So, this Connor guy is cute," she said, her voice a bit off.

Spike snorted. "He's got a girlfriend, you little minx," he muttered, glancing at her in surprise. "Not to mention he's my brother, or my uncle, or some stupid thing. Maybe both. And my nephew. I've yet to figure it out."

"Ew," said Dawn.

"Yeah," said Spike. "You want to talk?"

"I want to talk," agreed Dawn. "But it's bloody hard, isn't it?"

"It is," said Spike with a sigh. He tapped his fingers against his thigh nervously. "You know, I never really meant...I tried to be..." He hesitated, then ploughed forward. "I was a sucky friend after your sister came back," he said in a rush.

"You were," acknowledged Dawn.

"And then I..." Spike stopped, swallowing hard. "After I came back, things were already broken between us, weren't they, Dawn?" he asked her.

"They were," she said. "Now I'm thinking maybe they shouldn't have been."

"I was proud of you," said Spike. He looked up, meeting her eyes, his own blue eyes vulnerable. "When you threatened me...I was scared, mostly, but I was so proud of you just then."

She smiled, a quirk of a smile that quickly vanished. "Thanks," she said softly. "I know...I know it'd be hard to be friends like we were before Buffy died. It was easy, wasn't it? Back then?"

"You weren't smart enough to be scared, and I was too evil to be scared for you," said Spike, a little smile playing around his mouth. "And neither of us had the good sense to see what kind of trouble we could get in. Yeah, it was easy. And I'd do it again in a minute."

"But we could...I could stop hating you, you know. Very easily," said Dawn seriously.

Spike smiled. "It's more than I deserve," he said. "And Connor's not really that close to his girl. Or me."

Dawn gave him a sarcastic look. "Right. Me, and Angel's son. That would last right up till...he lost his soul, right?"

Spike got a panicked look on his face. "What? Happy? What happy? No happy!" he babbled quickly.

--

Buffy rummaged around in the fridge, trying to find something even remotely edible. She heard a sound at the door, and glanced up, surprised to see Faith.

"Oh, hey," said Buffy. "I don't suppose you know where all the real food is?"

Faith stalked angrily over to a cupboard, opening it to reveal a bag of chips. She tossed it to Buffy, rummaging around behind it in search of alcohol. Unfortunately, even the wine was gone now.

Buffy watched her, quirking an eyebrow into the air. "Problems with Xander?" she asked sweetly.

Faith glared at her. "Don't start," she growled, her voice a bit huskier than usual. She stomped back out of the room, leaving Buffy alone.

Spike slouched in the door slowly. "Buffy," he said. "Been looking for you."

Buffy immediately felt a knot form in her stomach. "Oh, terrific," she muttered under her breath.

Spike took a deep breath. "Listen, I got something to say. I know you and the Immortal have been...friendly...and I think you should know that—"

"I broke up with him," said Buffy.

Spike's eye twitched. "Right. You broke up with him. Listen, I've moved on, Buffy, and you should do that same." Buffy stared at him, surprised. "If you want to get back together with Angel, I'm not going to stand in your way."

"You moved on? With who?" asked Buffy.

Spike frowned. "Um, Harmony." He thought about it for a moment, realizing how bad it sounded. "And Drusilla," he added.

Buffy opened her mouth to speak, but Spike shook his head. "I know we had good times and bad, but that's all in the past. And Angel's soul won't go away when he's happy. I, uh, gotta go find Connor. He wanted some help with some...thing."

He strode away quickly.

Buffy blinked, trying to digest what she'd just seen. Dawn stuck her head in the door. "Hey, Buffy," she said. "Spike's looking for you."

"He found me," said Buffy blankly. "And told me to move on."

"Oh, that's what he wanted to tell you?" asked Dawn, surprised. "Wow. I thought he'd totally start up with the Buffy obsession again."

"He was lying," said Buffy, surprised. "He's not even very good at it. He tried to tell me he'd moved on, but the best he could come up with was Harmony. And Drusilla."

Dawn giggled. "So why'd he tell you, then?" she asked, sitting down beside Buffy.

"So that I'd move on, and not feel guilty," said Buffy, her eyes widening. "He was being noble, don't you see! Setting what I want over what he wants...my god, that's so nice!"

Dawn frowned. "It is," she finally admitted. "But, nice? Noble? That doesn't sound very Spike."

"Don't you see?" asked Buffy. "He's grown. He's become better."

There was a knock at the door, and Buffy looked up. Seeing Angel she let out an incoherent squeak.

"Um, Buffy, I have something I need to say," said Angel, his voice low. His smooth voice sent shivers up her spine, and she tried to open her mouth to respond, suddenly very aware that after what Spike had said she should be trying to let him down gently.

Angel held up a hand, stopping her. "I know about...the Immortal...and I wanted to tell you that I understand. If your cookie dough is baked, it's only right that you should choose for yourself who—"

"She broke up with _l'Eterno_," said Dawn.

Angel frowned. "Broke up...oh. Right." He took a deep, unnecessary, breath. "Listen, Buffy, I've moved on. If you want to pick back up with Spike, that's okay. I understand."

"You've moved on?" asked Dawn, surprised. "With who?" she asked, her eyes narrowing.

"Um, her name is Nina," said Angel awkwardly. "Anyway, uh, yeah. I always expected that when I turned human...but Spike is human now, Buffy, and he's everything you've ever wanted." He turned and fled.

"That was odd," said Dawn.

Buffy stared. "My god. They've turned noble!" she said, her voice disgusted.

"What?" said Dawn, surprised.

"I mean, at least last time they had the good grace to be horribly jealous of each other. Now they're...noble about it! And, and, ..." Buffy trailed off, glancing to Dawn. "At least while it was just Spike it was kind of cute, in a 'does he think that's gonna make me jump him' kind of way."

Dawn watched Buffy babble, bemused. "You know," she cut in. "This doesn't mean you have to choose one of them. It doesn't even mean you have to listen to them. It just means they're trying to let you run your own life. Kudos to the vampires."

--

Angel found Spike in an empty training room, waling away on a punching bag. He nodded to the other vampire, moving to a corner of the room and sitting down on a weight bench.

"Did any of the others make it?" asked Angel.

"Nope," snarled Spike. "Gunn, Wes, Illyria—all gone!"

"But Lorne made it," said Angel, nodding contentedly. "That's one, at least."

"Three, if you count us!" snapped Spike.

Angel looked away. "I can't believe..."

"And your soul isn't going to go fluttering off just because you get too happy!" snarled Spike, stepping back and kicking the punching bag a few times. "You can go get your happy on with Buffy as often as you like!"

"And you're human, you can give her a normal life...apparently while still being strong for her, a warrior," said Angel.

"And she'll never have to worry about you turning evil on her!" snarled Spike. "You can bang her all you like!"

Angel glowered at the vampire. "Stop it," he said, looking away. "Wolfram and Hart is completely destroyed?"

"Not completely," said Spike. "I destroyed the Italy office too, but there are still a bunch of local factions, offices around the world...with the Senior Partners, though, they've been turning on each other. We've crippled them, and Connor's been searching for the largest groups."

"You mean, you've been systematically wiping them out?" asked Angel, crossing his arms. "Sometimes, William, you make me proud."

Spike grunted, going back to punching the bag. "Connor and I work good together," he snarled.

Angel leaned back, contemplating that. "Do you know, I think I've discovered that there is a limit to my previously unlimited hatred for you?" he asked the human.

Spike glanced at him. "And I guess I'm a bit more tolerant of your brooding poncyness, since I brought you back and all," he grunted, pounding on the bag.

Connor wandered in. "Hey," he said, glancing at them both. "The Slayers have been letting you guys roam free?"

"Yeah," said Angel, wincing. "Although they drugged my blood."

"It was for Dru," said Spike. "What'd you expect?"

Angel looked away. "Do you guys have a plan?" he asked.

"Yeah," said Spike.

"Not really," said Connor. They glared at each other. "Hunt them down and kill them is not a plan!" snapped Connor.

"It's good enough," snarled Spike.

"The remnants of Wolfram and Hart?" guessed Angel.

Spike glared at him, his fists slamming into the punching bag faster and faster. He didn't have to answer, the loud cracks of flesh on cloth more than answer enough for Angel. It was clear that the vampire turned man was still filled with anger and rage, filled with enough energy to continue fighting.

"How will we find them?" argued Connor.

Angel shifted unhappily. "I know some guys," he said slowly.

Spike and Connor both turned to look at him, and Spike let his arms fall to his sides. "At last, some sanity!" he chortled.

Angel looked to Connor. "Don't you have university?" he asked.

Connor nodded reluctantly. "But if you two are going to go fight..." he began, his voice determined.

"I promise we won't start a war without you," said Angel, standing up. "We'll just look for them. When we find them..."

"The Watcher isn't going to like us leaving," said Spike. "He still only halfway trusts us."

Angel shrugged. "We deserve it," he said bleakly. "I'll talk to him."

Spike shook his head. "It's all blood and ashes," he said gloomily, returning to the punching bag.

Angel tilted his head. "Has he been...a little crazy? Lately?" he asked Connor.

Connor snorted. "Completely around the bend," he responded.

Angel sighed. "I knew the whole human gig wasn't for you," he said, triumphant.

Spike glanced at him. "I'd give the bloody annoyance to you in a minute!" he snapped. "You never appreciated being a vampire anyway!"

Connor thought about it for a moment. "Maybe that's why the Powers chose him," he wondered aloud. "Because you'd like it too much, dad. Because he liked being a vampire too much."

Spike and Angel both scowled at him. "This isn't fate," said Angel, disgusted.

"It's a bloody mess, is what it is," said Spike.

Angel nodded his agreement, and they both stalked out of the room together.

"Okay," said Connor, shaking his head. He stepped up to the punching bag and began hitting it.


	14. Lesser Talk

Disclaimer: I don't own a thing.

Summary: Post AtS and BtVS, Faith and Xander are approached by a secret government agency. Surprises all around.

Rating: PG-13

Chapter 14: Lesser talks

Giles sat down behind the desk, carefully uncapped the pen, and began writing in his diary.

_Spike has brought Angel back from the dead._

He stared at the single sentence, and was struck by how nonsensical and silly it sounded. He carefully scratched it out, and began again.

_William the Bloody, recently resouled, was able to battle the minions of hell and recover the soul of his Sire's Sire, Angelus, rescuing him from eternal torment._

It still sounded silly.

Giles put down the pen and rubbed his eyes, wishing very much that things could have stayed as simple as they'd been in the early days. Slayers staked vampires. That had been easier than this.

But now that happy situation only existed in Xander's mind.

Giles moved his fingers to his throat, rubbing there for a moment. The vampire's tale had been convincing, especially since Spike had settled into a little more coherence since returning. Connor had been even more helpful, supplying information that had filled in the gaps.

But Giles still felt uneasy about leaving the two vampires, as well as Spike and Connor, roaming through the halls of the military base. Well, Drusilla wasn't exactly roaming, but she was still _there._

And that thought made him shudder as well. He also had to talk to Riley, he realized, and somehow try to gauge the soldier's reactions to all this. And get assurances they'd stop helping demons. And get his Slayers out of here before they became trapped here.

There was a knock at the door, and Giles glanced up, surprised. "Come in," he said uneasily, hoping it wasn't Spike or Angel. Or Connor. Or Riley.

When it turned out to be Faith, he felt his stomach twist. Or Faith, he added to the list silently.

She marched in and sat down heavily in the chair across from him. "I want a new Watcher," she said.

"Oh, um, did you break the last one I gave?" Giles asked, hoping that his feeble attempt at humor would earn at least a smile.

It earned a glare, and he quailed under the force of it, trying to keep a stoic face. "Sorry," he said shortly.

"Look, it was a bad idea to put me and Xander together. Too much history," said Faith shortly. "You leave me with him, and maybe he will get broken, okay? I want somebody else."

"There is nobody else," said Giles slowly.

"Then I don't want a Watcher any more," said Faith dismissively.

Giles sighed, taking his glasses off and beginning to clean them. "Faith, I'm not sure what's brought this on, but I had thought you and Xander were getting on rather well."

"No, we weren't," she said simply. "Looked it, weren't. Okay?"

"I'll…figure something out before we leave here. All right?" asked Giles.

Faith nodded, standing up. Giles sighed, watching her leave. He'd really hoped that they could work out some of their issues. Faith could be a great Slayer, if she'd only learn from Xander. She needed some of the stability Xander represented, some of the heart for the fight.

And Xander could be a great Watcher…if he'd learn from Faith. He was close to suicidal, and Giles had known that Faith would watch out for him. Now he'd have to find somebody else to watch out for him, rather than hoping Faith could convince Xander to start watching out for himself.

But it appeared that it wouldn't work out. He began mentally sketching out new plans, trying to figure out ways to keep them both working.

There was another knock at the door. Giles took a deep breath, wondering who it was this time. "Come in?" he said, hoping his voice wasn't too uncertain.

Angel moved inside the room gracefully, making no noise at all. He glided into a seat, sitting without waiting for permission. He didn't quite make eye contact with Giles, lacing his hands together and examining them. "I was hoping we could talk," he said softly.

Giles slowly relaxed the hand that had clamped down on the stake in his pocket, but kept the hand in the pocket, still wrapped around the stake. "Yes, of course," he said, a little more stiffly than usual.

"Spike and I need to leave, and soon," said Angel. Giles frowned.

"I'm not sure that's such a good idea," he managed to get out before Angel cut him off.

"Spike and I have different reasons for wanting to get out of here. This place is driving him even more over the edge, and I… I have some unfinished business."

Giles gazed at the tall vampire. "Unfinished business?" he asked finally.

"Wolfram and Hart still has offices around the world," growled the vampire. "The business we've started has got to be finished." He stopped, hesitating. "Besides that, we don't belong here. Not among your Slayers, not among these soldiers. You know that."

"I…have been uneasy with the arrangement," admitted Giles. He considered the vampire he only half trusted. "But at the same time, despite your explanations, I find it hard to trust you."

Angel grimaced. "I know," he said, looking away. "I don't blame you, when it comes down to it. How about a compromise, then?"

"Compromise?" asked Giles uncertainly, not sure what form the compromise would take and positive no matter what form it came in he wouldn't like it.

"Connor needs to go back to school," said Angel. "Out of the three of us, he's got the most, um, ties to this world. And he's certainly the most trust-worthy of us, being human… and Spike's human too. You should let him go. If you want to keep one of us around until you're certain, it should be me." He thought about that for a minute. "Although there'd be a condition," he added.

"Condition?" asked Giles carefully. He prayed that Angel wouldn't make Buffy's continued presence his condition.

"Don't tell Buffy," said Angel simply. "She'd feel guilty, and might… It's better that she moves on. Finds her normal life…" He shook his head, looking away.

Giles made the intuitive leap instantly. "With Spike, you mean," he said, shocked that he hadn't realized this sooner.

"He's human now," whispered Angel. "Whatever guilt or wrongness stood in their way before, it's gone now."

Giles thought about that for a minute, trying to find some logical reason why it wouldn't work out. Finding none, and remembering all-too-clearly how Buffy had defended Spike before, he sighed and leaned back in his chair, his hand still wrapped tightly around the stake. "Not a lot of room for trust there," he noted.

Angel coughed. "Frankly, Giles, I'm astounded even Spike still trusts me," he said bitterly. "I've made so many mistakes…I got Fred killed first, then Wesley, then Gunn, then Illyria, then Spike…and finally myself. I was the last to fall, you know. I think they did it on purpose, so that when I got to hell I'd know that I'd caused the deaths of everyone around me. There was no hope at all that they'd survived."

"Yet Spike came back from the dead," said Giles.

Angel smiled, a tight, triumphant smile. "That was one I bet he wasn't expecting," he said, gloating. "I just gave him what he wanted—no, he never saw it coming."

Giles eyed him, uncertain of this. "I thought you were friends now?" he asked.

Angel recoiled. "Friends? Me and Spike?" he asked, his voice disbelieving. "What strange world do you live in?"

Giles smiled. "Well, at least some things don't change," he said, relaxing a bit.

--

Spike watched the Slayers spar, sitting in the corner of the training room. He was squeezed tight against the corner, so tightly that it looked as if he was trying to vanish through the wall to avoid being noticed.

Being turned human had been harder on him that getting a soul. Then he had been fighting himself, fighting a bubbling, churning realization within himself, against the very loss of his identity. He'd triumphed against his soul in a way that was impossible to explain, keeping his identity and self-awareness while letting the soul creep into him and assimilate--unlike Angelus, who'd been absolutely unable to come to terms with the soul.

But being turned human had nearly cost him his sanity. The sudden change in mindset had nearly destroyed him. He was no longer a predator, and had lost much of his senses. The change in abilities had nearly killed him.

And the dead silence in his brain where an awareness of his Sire had been had nearly made him cry with happiness. If Angel never got in his head again, it would be too soon.

He heard the bo sticks smashing together, and tried to focus on the violence. But ever since he'd got back, the violence just hadn't been as _satisfying_ as before. Without his full demon nature, he just couldn't seem to fall into that beat, that rhythm, that had ruled his life.

And that bothered him more than anything else.

The two Slayers stopped sparring and started talking, apparently finished. Then they left, leaving him alone with Faith, who was still working on the punching bag.

Spike glanced at her, surprised at the ferocity she was putting into her attack on the innocent bag. Then he shook his head, returning to his reverie.

He almost didn't hear Buffy and Dawn come in.

Almost.

His head snapped back, slamming quietly into the wall. He muffled a yelp, watching as they took up bo sticks and stepped onto the mats. He stayed quiet, hoping they wouldn't notice him.

"So, Spike," said Dawn, tapping Buffy's bo with her own lightly to get them started. "The rumor is that Angel's meeting with Giles."

"Good luck to him!" growled Faith, continuing to pound the bag angrily.

Spike glanced from Dawn to Faith, frowning. He stood up on unsteady legs, closing his eyes and just trying to acclimate for a second. Then he carefully swaggered over to the punching bag, leaning against the wall behind Faith. "Yeah, Angel wants to get on the road again, finish off the lawyers," he said, watching Faith pound the bag.

Buffy watched him, surprised by his sudden interest in Faith. She wondered for a minute just what they'd done in hell together.

_Stop it!_ she scolded herself mentally, blocking Dawn's first attack easily, then countering with a light thrust that Dawn knocked aside. _It's none of your business what he does, and with whom. He made that clear last night, when he said he'd moved on._

Faith glanced over her shoulder at the platinum-haired annoyance. "What?" she asked, irritated.

"What'd he say?" asked Spike.

"He said he'd think about assigning me a new Watcher," grunted Faith.

"I meant the whelp," said Spike patiently. "What'd he say."

"Xander?" asked Faith, her voice getting even tighter.

Buffy didn't quite understand what was behind this. As far as she knew Xander had gotten over any underlying resentment towards Faith, although she wouldn't put it past him to mention their 'history' at the most awkward of moments.

Still, she hadn't thought there was any problem there. They didn't seem to argue that much, and that had seemed like a good thing…at the time. Now it was seeming a little suspicious, from two people who loved to argue as much as those two.

Spike scowled. "This isn't about…this is my fault, isn't it?" Buffy was surprised by the guilt in his voice when he said it. She still wasn't used to him acting guilty about anything, soul or no soul.

"Because you broke down my final mental barriers and put me on the path of trying to seduce him?" asked Faith sarcastically.

Buffy and Dawn stopped sparring, staring at her.

Spike barked a laugh. "Yeah, sounds like something I'd do, doesn't it?" he asked. "Turned you down, did he?"

Faith swung a fist back at his face over her shoulder, a smooth sweeping blow. He blocked it with the palm of his hand, catching the blow.

"Yes," said Faith darkly, spinning and kicking at Spike.

Buffy started forward, remembering with a sudden ferocious worry that Spike was human. But Spike rocked back with the blow, grinning.

"Make you feel better?" he taunted Faith. "Get to take out some of that aggression on someone you can hit?"

"Stop it!" said Dawn suddenly, stepping forward.

Spike and Faith both turned to her in surprise. Dawn kept going, keeping her momentum. "In case you two hadn't noticed, we're in enemy territory here," hissed Dawn. "This is not our home, or our base. And those cameras in the corners are not here for our benefit! The last thing we need is to give them something they can use against us. You want to fight, go outside where they can't watch you, and _then_fight."

Spike face twitched, registering shock briefly. "Course, nibblet," he said, shaking his head. He glanced at Faith. "I don't know what you were thinking," he needled her.

Buffy shook her head. "Don't you ever learn?" she asked, amused despite herself. It almost felt like old times, with Spike needling those stronger than himself with no hint whatsoever of common sense.

Spike glanced at her. "Never!" he vowed, grinning recklessly.

Then the grin slid off his face, replaced by a scowl. He jammed his hands in his pockets and stomped away, leaving Buffy more than a little confused.

Faith followed him, glaring at Dawn.

"So this is what being the adult feels like?" asked Dawn. "Well, that sucks." She repositioned her bo, aiming it at Buffy. "Again?" she asked.

Buffy shook her head. "That was…confusing. On a lot of levels."

Dawn moved forward, ignoring the head shake. She tapped her staff against the one in Buffy's hands lightly. Buffy's head jerked back at the sound of the quiet impact. "He's confused, and confusing, isn't he?" asked Dawn.

"You seem to be adjusting to this pretty well," growled Buffy.

Dawn shrugged. "I'm trying," she said simply. "You want to go after Faith, or should I?"

Buffy shivered. "Maybe you should. Faith and I have never really got on well."

"Go figure," said Dawn. They began sparring, Buffy holding back and just going through the motions, careful not to hurt Dawn. In the midst of the quick clack-clack of combat, Dawn spoke again. "You know, I never expected Spike to come back to life. Maybe I should have. You did, after all."

Buffy shook her head. "Yeah, but…"

--

Connor was packing his stuff up when Riley found him. Riley glared at the teen, watching him pack all his belongings into a tiny suitcase.

"Hi, Riley," said Connor.

"It's like a yo-yo," lamented Riley. "One minute he's good, the next, oops! Bad again!"

"Welcome to my life," snorted Connor. "Oops, I'm evil! Oops, my dad is evil! Oops, no, it's the woman we both love! Oops, no, it's my daughter!" He continued silently packing.

Riley nodded, rubbing his chin. "Sorry I didn't trust you," he offered.

"It's cool," said Connor. "I'm just amazed you didn't turn on us sooner."

Riley shrugged. "Well, hard as it was to trust Spike, you didn't really strike me as evil."

"Yeah, not so much since I turned from the dark side," said Connor. "I guess I'm more Darth Vader than Angelus was, that way." He smiled, zipping closed his duffel bag. "It's been cool working with you."

Riley smiled. "Yeah…you do realize I've been ordered by my superiors to detain you until further notice, right?"

"That's why Spike and I came to you," said Connor, smiling.

"You thought I'd do the right thing and let you both go?" asked Riley, bemused.

"Well, me, at any rate," said Connor. "And that's the important one."

"Why's that?" asked Riley.

"If I don't get at least a B in math, I'm gonna lose my scholarships," said Connor. "Then it's back to sunny California."

"You like your college?" asked Riley.

Connor shrugged. "Boston's nice," he said finally. "Can I get a ride back out there?"

"Buffy said that someone you called your sister was involved with this," said Riley sternly. "You didn't have Sarah helping you, did you?"

Connor rolled his eyes. "I had her out of there well before the fighting started!" he protested.

Riley sighed. "I'll get one of the jets to fly you out to Boston. What about Drusilla?"

"Keep her?" asked Connor.

Riley shook his head. "I guess I'll talk to Giles and Buffy, see what the Slayers want to do with her," he said skeptically. "I'd really rather give her to them."

Connor smiled, his eyes lighting up. "That's quite a Christmas present," he said cheerfully. "And an insane vampire in a straitjacket," he hummed

Riley shrugged, moving out of the doorway so Connor could exit. "So I guess this is it, huh? The big quest is over."

Connor shook his head. "Not really," he admitted. "We still have a big problem that we don't even know how to deal with."

"What?" said Riley, confused. "I thought you'd dealt with the bad guys."

"We dealt with the Senior Partners," replied Connor. "But that wasn't the biggest problem we were facing, not by a long shot. Spike and Angel had already crippled them. No, our real problems were coming from right here on earth."

"Real problems?" asked Riley, frowning.

"It wasn't the Senior Partners who stole Cordelia," said Connor. "It wasn't the Senior Partners who arranged for my daughter to be an ancient evil that could have consumed this world."

Riley's right eye twitched. "Someday you're going to have to explain it all to me," he said with a sigh.

They stopped in front of the lab, and Connor shifted uncomfortably. "I don't even understand it," he admitted. "Angel thinks it was Jasmine who orchestrated it all, but I'm not so sure."

"So you think there are other bad guys out there," said Riley, nodding.

"Not to mention the fact that there's still at least one branch of Wolfram and Hart fully functional," grimaced Connor. "I have a lot of unanswered questions."

"But you're going back to school," noted Riley.

Connor grinned, knocking on the lab door. "Yeah, isn't it grand?"

--

Drusilla sullenly eyed the soldiers around her, waiting for the moment she knew would inevitably come.

She knew that her Dark Knight was coming to save her, even if she wasn't altogether sure anymore if she even wanted him to save her. He'd done it so many times in the past, but this time would be different.

He didn't love her any more, not like he had before. Now it was all ashes and nobility, things she'd never seen from him at all. Not in her wildest visions had she even imagined him becoming a Champion.

Like the Angel-beast, he had become a hero. A thing of goodness. Her stomach turned at the very thought.

There was a knock at the door, and Spike came in. She felt her stomach flutter at the familiar sight of him, and she swallowed unnecessarily.

"You lot, bugger off," said Spike roughly. The soldiers did so, confused, and Spike approached Drusilla. His eyes gleamed.

"I won't be a butterfly forever," pouted Drusilla.

"I'm not asking you to be, Dru," said Spike patiently. He put his hands on her shoulders, giving her comfort in a small way. She tried to pull away, not wanting to accept the comfort from the monster he'd become, but he held her tight. With the drugs in her, she wasn't strong enough to pull away. "I got you something," he added quietly.

She stared at him, her mind's eye opening wide. "I won't take it," she whispered.

"Oh, come on!" said Spike.

Faith entered the room behind him. "Spike?" she said. There was an edge to her voice, anger at having to seek him out. "Can we talk?"

"I'm a little busy," said Spike, leaning closer to Drusilla. "Dru… it's the only way I can let you come with me."

"I'll not be like you!" she hissed.

"Are you offering her a soul?" asked Faith, moving closer.

Spike sighed, closing his eyes and lowering his head to Drusilla's shoulder. "It's not a good time, Faith," he said.

"What makes you think she'll take it?" asked Faith.

"She's already mad; I don't see how it could be any worse for her than it was for Angel, or for me," said Spike. Drusilla's face shifted, her demonic visage coming forward.

"Spike!" said Faith, jumping forward.

Spike didn't move, and Drusilla's fangs descended on his throat before Faith could even cover half the distance between them.

--

Xander began scratching his notes in his official Watcher's diary.

_Spike's alive. Angel's not evil, I guess. And Faith kissed me._

He stared down at the paragraph, wondering if maybe there was some way to get in a time machine and get Faith out of Boston before meeting Spike. If so, then all of this would make better sense.

In the morning he'd been sure that Faith was going to sleep with Spike. Then she'd practically jumped him, confusing him to no end.

He heard the door up and looked up, half-panicked. He slammed the diary closed.

It was Giles at the door. Xander let out a long sigh of relief.

"Who were you afraid it would be?" asked Giles, amused.

"Spike. Angel. Faith," replied Xander. "And possibly Drusilla. Although she's definitely last on the list. What's up?"

"Faith has asked to be assigned a new Watcher," said Giles carefully. He glanced around the sparse room, noting there was nowhere to sit except beside Xander on the bed. He elected to remain standing.

"Really? Great!" said Xander. As Giles reacted he smiled sheepishly. "Or, not great?"

"I don't have another Watcher for her," said Giles. "What brought this on?"

Xander shrugged. "Bad day?" he offered sheepishly.


	15. New Places

Disclaimer: I don't own a thing.

Summary: Post AtS and BtVS, Faith and Xander are approached by a secret government agency. Surprises all around.

Rating: PG-13

Chapter 15: New days

Faith shot forward, raising her hand to hit Drusilla. Before she could get there Drusilla's head snapped up, and the insane vampire let out a howl of pain.

Spike lifted his head off Drusilla's shoulder, glancing back at Faith. "What, you thought I'd just walk into the arms of an insane vampire who still had fangs?" He lifted his right hand, cradling Drusilla's head. "It'll wear off in just a second, luv," he murmured.

"You…you had them stick a chip in her head?" asked Faith, astounded.

"It was the only way this was going to work," replied Spike. "She put the guards in thrall at least once a day, and if she'd been able to hurt them, we'd have had a body count higher than I can count." He smiled, stroking Drusilla's cheek. "My dark princess can't be kept in a cage for very long, can she?" he asked.

Faith snorted, moving to the wall and leaning against it. "And they still chain her up and drug her?"

"Just the chip alone wouldn't do it," replied Spike. "She's got such strength in her that she could have escaped, or killed them, even with a chip." He grinned at the dark-haired vampire, who smiled back at him, her features morphing back into human form.

"I don't want the dubious gifts you offer," sighed Drusilla. "You subvert the stars, and force blood to run uphill. I don't want it."

Spike wrapped his arms tightly around the vampire. "If you don't you'll be trapped here, in this half-life!" he whispered. "Destroyed by your own power. I don't want to leave you here, like this!"

Faith shook her head. "You're a hoot," she said dryly.

"What do you want?" asked Spike coldly.

"I couldn't find Angel," said Faith. "I know you guys are planning on leaving soon, and I want to go with you."

"Abandon your other slayers?" asked Spike, surprised.

Drusilla pulled lightly against the chains binding her, causing them to clank. "Silly girl is burned by her heart," she said, giggling.

"Hey, a little less advice from the crazy vamp," grumbled Faith. She carefully brushed some of her hair out of her eyes, watching the vampire and ex-vampire closely. "Well? You guys gonna try to stop me from going with you?"

Spike sighed deeply, letting go of Drusilla and standing up. "I don't think you really understand what comes next," he complained.

"What? You go fight more demons? Maybe another army of demons?" asked the dark-haired Slayer. "I want in on that."

Spike turned away angrily. "You have no idea!" he snarled. He took a deep breath, trying to calm down. "Can't blame you for wanting to ditch Harris," he noted.

Faith took a pack of cigarettes out of her pocket. She tapped it against her palm, freeing one, and brought it to her lips. As she replaced the pack in her pocket Spike grudgingly offered her his lighter, flicking it on in front of her face.

She leaned forward, dangling the tip of the cigarette in the flame and inhaling sharply. "Take it easy, you act this nice all the time and I might think you cared," she grumbled, stung by his words about Xander and about ready to hit him for them.

Spike shrugged, pushing the lighter into his jeans pocket. "There's a bunch of higher powers and demons out there looking to finish the job they already started on us," he noted. "But that's just icing on the cake for you, inn't it?"

She managed a half-hearted grin.

Spike shook his head. "I'm gonna hate myself for this in the morning," he groaned, shaking his head. He took a deep breath, savoring the smell of cigarette smoke.

"What?" asked Faith tightly.

Spike folded his arms over his chest. "Look, Harris is an annoying git, and I don't like him, okay?" he asked. Faith's eyes narrowed. "You want to make the moves on him, right?"

Faith glared at him, not speaking. Spike waited for a beat, then continued. "First thing, just tell him how you feel. I bet he has no idea you've been letting this eat you up. Clear the air."

She glared at him. "And you're an expert on clearing the air, suddenly. You've barely even spoken to Buffy, and you tried to rape her!"

Spike grabbed the cigarette out of her mouth with a sudden snakelike flick of his wrist, stuck it in his own mouth and took a greedy drag. "I thought you quit," sneered Faith.

"For this conversation, I'm unquitting," said Spike harshly.

"My dark knight's afraid," murmured Drusilla. "Scared out of his wits by flowers."

"She's right," said Spike, laughing. "I'm too much a coward to take my own advice."

Faith glowered at Spike, grabbing the cigarette away from him with a quick movement, stuffing it back between her lips angrily. "And now you want me to be brave, do what you can't?" she asked, mocking him.

"Where am I?" asked Spike. Faith gave him odd look, and he gave an aggrieved sigh. "In relationship to Buffy, I mean. Right now. I'm outside, aren't I? Not inside. Not near her. If you're a coward like me, that's where you'll be to Xander. Outside. Away. Maybe even running away."

Faith glowered at him. Drusilla stood up, turning around and twisting. "Nasty Slayer doesn't want to hear," she said, her voice traveling up a scale melodically. "Nasty Slayer just wants to run some more."

Faith glared at the vampire, still angry at Spike. She glanced back at him, meeting his blue eyes with her angry gaze. "You lied to me before," she spat.

"I never lied," he said. "I just… prodded." He shifted uncomfortable, aware that he'd hurt her before, when he'd deceived her. "I needed to get it done. It got done," he said, all too aware that he was only digging himself a deeper grave.

Drusilla giggled. "Now our Willie's done it, hasn't he?" she asked.

Faith sighed, folding her arms together over her chest. "Do we have to have this conversation in front of Hannibal Lectra here?" she asked irritably.

Spike shrugged. "We can go outside," he suggested, referring to Dawn's earlier command to go outside and hit each other.

Faith scowled at him. She was trying awfully hard to stay mad at him, but when he wasn't trying to be irritating he could be easier to get along with than anybody else she knew.

Or maybe that was just because he was a lot like her, ruled by his impulses and a little darker than the Scoobies. It certainly didn't hurt.

Spike spoke again, his low drawl making the words a seductive growl. "Or we could go back to my room," he suggested, raising an eyebrow.

"Ugh," said Faith.

"Ugh?" said Spike, an eyebrow shooting up. "Not the usual reaction, love, I can assure you."

"That's why Xander was mad. He thought I was sleeping with you," said Faith.

Spike laughed, throwing his head back. Faith scowled. "I don't see the humor," she said frostily.

"Bit sensitive to these things, our Xander is," said Spike, his head coming back forward. "Since I slept with Buffy, but more since I slept with Anya."

"You slept with the scary demon girl?" asked Faith, a smile twitching at her mouth.

"And you slept with Xander, and Buffy's boy toy," said Spike, ticking them off on his fingers. "That silly bint was right. Xander and I are the only ones that haven't slept together yet."

Faith laughed then, despite her earlier promise to herself that she would remain in a sour mood no matter what he said. "There's one I'd pay to see," she said.

Spike grimaced, glancing to Drusilla, who simply raised an eyebrow. "Much fun as it was calling him a nummy treat, I doubt that's going to happen," Spike assured her.

"My Spoike is all noble now," said Drusilla. "Doesn't have time for the baser pleasures of life."

"I have plenty of time!" protested Spike. "Really!"

"What's this?" asked Faith, even more amused. Her earlier bad mood was all but forgotten now. "Didn't you tell Buffy you'd moved on?"

"How'd you know that?" asked Spike.

Faith shrugged. "Maybe B has a big mouth?" she offered meekly.

"And maybe you were listening in?" asked Spike, grinning.

Faith shook her head. "Nah, I just heard B and Dawn talking about it earlier. They were in some heated discussion, apparently spurred because both you and Angel told her you'd moved on."

Spike scowled. "The poofter told her that? The idiot! Doesn't he see this is his big chance? I tried to tell him that last night…" His face fell with the sudden realization. "And he tried to tell me the same thing," he finished lamely, making the mental connections that had been shorted out before.

"But you haven't slept with anyone since B?" asked Faith, refusing to be sidetracked.

"There was Harmony!" protested Spike.

"And you slept with her?" asked Faith.

Spike scuffed his toe against the metal floor. "Well, we didn't get that far," he hedged. "But I would have."

"And…?" prompted Faith, the smile around her mouth flickering.

"I had to seduce Dru to capture her!" shot Spike quickly.

"But all you did was kiss me, and you didn't even mean it," purred Drusilla, enjoying his discomfort as much as Faith was.

"So you've been living celibate in memory of Buffy, huh?" asked Faith.

"No!" Growled Spike angrily. "No!" He thought about it for a second, glaring angrily at Faith. "I've been going through a dry spell," he said shortly. "That's all. I'll meet a girl I want to do some time, and then…" Spike's voice trailed off slowly as he realized his error.

"You haven't wanted any girls since Buffy?" asked Faith, savoring the moment as Spike's angry face slowly melted away to be replaced by an utterly miserable face.

"More or less, yeah," he admitted. Faith felt a slight twinge of remorse, but ignored it. She felt she'd earned this one after the callous way he'd manipulated her in hell.

"Well, maybe someone should tell her that," said Faith speculatively, striking a pose and touching one finger to the side of her mouth.

"Don't be daft," growled Spike. "Then _somebody's_ be bound to tell Xander how you feel."

Faith snorted. "You wouldn't," she said confidently.

Spike raised one eyebrow.

"How evil," sighed Drusilla, sinking back to the floor and wrapping her arms around her knees.

--

Xander and Giles entered Riley's office silently, slipping in the open door and closing it behind them. Riley, engrossed with the paperwork on his desk, didn't hear them come in.

Xander smiled mischievously, moving closer before clearing his throat. Riley started, looking up in surprise. "Xander," he said, letting out a sigh of relief. "Giles. Is something wrong?"

"We're getting ready to move our Slayers back to their respective postings now that the crisis has ended," said Giles. "We were hoping that you could help us with transportation."

Riley frowned, leaning back in his seat. "Well, of course," he said, smiling at them.

"And we'd like custody of Drusilla," added Giles.

Riley frowned. "Well, well, well," he murmured. He turned away from them, making a show of stroking his chin.

He'd been prepared to offer them custody of Drusilla, but he wasn't sure why they'd asked for custody. Earlier Giles had said that the vampire's visions gave them an edge, and he supposed that was at least a part of it.

"I guess there's no problem with that," he said, turning back. "You certainly have the firepower to hold her. Is there anything else?"

"Angel will be coming with us," said Giles.

Xander cleared his throat. "As a 'guest,'" he said, making quote marks with his fingers. "Until we're entirely sure we can trust him again."

"I see," said Riley, surprised.

Xander nodded seriously, glancing to Giles. Giles frowned slightly, but nodded his agreement. "Do you know where Spike and Connor will be going?" asked Giles.

"I don't think they're leaving together," said Riley carefully.

Actually, he did know. He knew that Connor was already gone, and he was pretty sure he knew what Spike was going to do next. But he kept his face impassive.

He hadn't told Angel, and he wasn't going to tell them. It was none of their business.

--

Sam was writing up her reports on the sensor bundles that Connor had been carrying into hell when Spike snuck up behind her and tapped her on the shoulder. She let out a yelp, nearly dropping the pad in her hands.

Spike grinned as the tall brunette turned to face him. She mock-scowled. "Do that too many times, and my husband will forget he promised not to stake you," she said sternly.

"Well, he can try," said Spike, still grinning. "You've met Faith?"

The dark Slayer was standing in the doorway, frowning. "No, I haven't," said Sam. "I have heard the field reports on you, though." She extended her hand. "And I heard quite an earful from Riley."

"You're Riley's wife?" asked Faith, suddenly suspicious of the other woman.

Sam laughed. "I've got to tell you, I've worked most of my jealousy issues out. Years ago."

"With a little help from Buffy," added Spike. "Listen, I need your help."

"You want to find your vampire friend?" asked Sam.

"She does," said Spike.

"We've got him in room 288," said Sam. "He's sleeping now."

"I'll wake him," said Faith, turning to leave now that she knew what she'd come for.

"He's going with the Slayers when they leave tomorrow," said Sam.

Faith stopped dead, spinning around. "He's what?" she demanded, glaring at Spike.

Spike sighed. "Sam, love, I really wish you'd left that out."

"You knew!" snapped Faith. "When did you plan to tell me?" If Angel wasn't leaving, then her idea of leaving with Angel and Spike was shot to pieces, and that he hadn't told her before now worried her.

"Angel was going to tell you," said Spike.

"Why didn't you?" asked Faith, her eyes narrowing. He had to have known that she wouldn't just leave Angel behind with the other Slayers, who'd probably all stake him if she wasn't there to protect him, so she knew he hadn't really meant to take her with him.

"I thought it'd be best if you two talked!" insisted Spike.

Faith thought about it. "You're about to do something Angel doesn't know about, and you want me to keep him busy," she said flatly.

Spike shrugged. "Maybe," he said.

Sam, listening to this, frowned. "Spike, we talked about this. I told you I wasn't going to approve her release. Besides, I thought the Slayers were taking her!"

Spike turned to Sam. "They think they are, but they don't know her," he pleaded. "They couldn't possibly know what she needs! Besides, I can save her."

"I don't think you can," said Sam gently. "She's crazy, Spike."

"She's not that crazy," replied Spike.

"You're breaking Drusilla out!" realized Faith suddenly.

"Of course I am!" snapped Spike. "You think anyone here was going to help her get a soul? Certainly not Riley, or Angel, or Connor! They wouldn't even give her the old gypsy curse!"

Faith shook her head. "And Angel's staying here…what about Connor?"

"Already left," said Sam helpfully.

"I'm going with you and Dru!" said Faith suddenly.

Spike rolled his eyes. "Bloody hell…" he groaned.

--

Riley waited until after Xander and Giles had gone to assemble their Slayers to pick up the phone. He dialed the number slowly, and waited for the response. Finally Connor picked up. "Hello?" said the teen.

"They asked for Drusilla," said Riley.

"Oh, good," said Connor. "Did you tell them Spike's going to try to save her?"

"No, I didn't. And I think he knows."

Connor was silent for a moment. "You're giving him a chance to break her out?" he asked, his voice tinged with disbelief.

"We know from Spike that the chip works better than we thought," said Riley. "It lasted three or four years before malfunctioning. I trust Spike, crazy as that sounds."

Connor groaned. "Why didn't you tell me this before?" he asked.

"Because before you would have stayed and thrown away your education," said Riley. "Do I have to offer to tutor you in psychology to make you stay in Boston? Trust me, that would not be of the good. My experience with psychology…well, my professor was psycho. And a mother figure."

"I know all about psychology," grumbled Connor. "Just ask me about oedipal complexes…mine are REALLY complex."

"Anyway, Spike will probably contact you. Try to be surprised when he does, advise him to turn himself in, and just mention that Harmony has set up shop in Chicago with a gang of vampires. Okay?"

Connor chuckled. "Right. And my dad?"

"I think I'll just let him continue to be a prisoner of the Slayers," said Riley. "He's safer that way."

"You mean, where he can't hurt anybody?"

"I mean, where Wolfram and Hart can't hurt him," replied Riley.

"I think we did a pretty good job of this," said Connor.

"Definitely," replied Riley. "We'll have to do this again some time."

--

A/N: what, you thought maybe Spike was the one with the big plans? Please. Everyone knows his plans never turn out well. This isn't the end; not by a long shot. But it is the hiatus point. Coming up next; Spike does, in fact, try to break Drusilla out of a government compound. Faith is on the horns of a dilemma; stop him? Tell Angel? And Angel is in custody of the Slayers…and they give him a very nice cell. And a very nice cellmate. Trust me, it's worth reading!


	16. Breakout

Disclaimer: I don't own a thing.

Summary: Post AtS and BtVS, Faith and Xander are approached by a secret government agency. Surprises all around.

Rating: PG-13

Chapter 16: Breakout

Sam keyed the door open and glanced at the guards. "Commander Finn would like to speak to you," she said shortly.

"Uh, what about the prisoner?" asked the lead guard. "Sir."

"I'm here, and I've got a Slayer with me," said Sam. "I'll take care of it."

The guards filed out slowly, and Faith watched them go with a sullen frown. She still wasn't sure she entirely approved of breaking the crazy vampire out of the government compound. She'd called Drusilla Hannibal Lectra earlier in the day, and now that the sun was setting outside the title seemed even more apt.

After the guards were gone Spike materialized out of the shadows with all the shadowy grace of the vampire he'd been, casually disabling the surveillance system with a sweep of him arm, leaving the cord dangling from the camera in the corner.

"All right, Dru, let's go," said Spike, his voice harsh.

Faith had expected something a little grander, nicer, and soft from him. Drusilla giggled, tugging at her chains.

Sam moved forward, unlocking the vampire's bonds quickly and jumping back. Drusilla swayed to her feet with an almost hypnotic grace, smiling widely at Sam. "Fly home, little birdy," she whispered. "The darkness roams free."

"Not while I'm here, it doesn't," said Spike, grabbing hold of Drusilla's wrist. "All right, Slayer, let's go."

"I'll sound the alarm in about fifteen minutes," said Sam wearily as they left. She waited till they were out of sight to grab the radio on her hip. "Riley?" she said, keeping her voice low in case Drusilla was still close enough to eavesdrop.

"Sam? Everything go all right?"

"Just like you said it would," she said, smiling and relaxing, shifting from the tense posture she'd maintained in Drusilla's presence. "Did you call Connor?"

"Yeah. He's good with it," said Riley. "I'll go tell the Slayers in about, oh, five minutes."

"I said fifteen," said Sam.

"Okay, ten," said Riley. "Spike suspect anything?"

"Not a thing," said Sam. "By the way, Faith's with him."

"What?" said Riley, surprised.

--

Xander carefully loaded the revolver he kept in his bag, locking the safety on carefully as he stowed it. The bullets were silver, with crosses etched into the sides. It wasn't a very effective weapon against most vampires, but you never knew when you'd meet a werewolf—or worse.

He then added the collapsible crossbow.

He stopped for a second, reveling in the irony. The weapons that he packed were all distance weapons, because he didn't like to get close to the monsters. But with only one eye, his ability to shoot was extremely limited.

Which meant that once again, he was entirely useless in a fight.

He zipped the bag closed, closing his eyes and wishing he were anywhere but here. Wishing that somehow he could take back the last week of his life. Maybe if he had grabbed Faith and gotten her out of Boston before they found Spike, maybe things would still be okay.

If being partnered up with Faith was really okay.

He slung the bag over his shoulder angrily, moving to the door. "Stupid, stupid, stupid," he muttered angrily, rubbing his good eye with his free hand.

As he moved down the hall he heard people coming the other way. He debated retreating to his room and letting them go by, just because he was in such a sour mood. But then it was too late, and he could see Faith and Spike coming his way, towing Drusilla behind them.

His first thought was, _just great, the last two people I wanted to see._ Then he realized that they had Drusilla with them, and he mentally amended, _last **three **people_.

"Xander!" said Faith, surprised.

"Faith," said Xander cautiously, meeting her gaze. She flushed and looked away. _Oh,_ he thought. _If only I'd known that sooner._

Spike glared at Xander. "Bugger all," he groaned.

Then Xander finally got past the initial lurch in his stomach at seeing Faith and processed the rest of the equation. Spike. Drusilla. Moving quickly.

"You're breaking Drusilla out! You are evil!" Xander yelled, in a panic.

"Am not!" retorted Spike. He paused, horrified. "We're not back to this song and dance, are we?" His face hardened into a mask of potential violence. "Out of the way, monkey-boy. We're going."

Faith put a hand on Spike's chest, holding him back. "We're breaking her out," she said flatly.

"You can't be serious!" said Xander. "I mean, she's all with the crazy, and the evil! And he's not even…they're both crazy!"

"At least I speak in complete sentences," replied Drusilla. "When the stars allow, of course."

Xander ignored her, continuing his rant. "For crying out loud, you're the one who was talking about staking the crazy vampire before! But now that Spike's your main man, of course you're with him on breaking her out of the one place in the world they can hold her!"

Spike pushed Faith away, moving forward. "Hey, Harris!" he snarled. "A few things. First of all, Dru's got a chip in her head. Just. Like. Mine. Second thing!" He let go of Dru's arm, leaving Faith to hold the vampire. "I. Don't. Now, you want to have this conversation? We have fifteen minutes. We can have it walking." He grabbed Xander's arm and pushed him forward, back towards Xander's room.

"Oh, I suppose you have some plan to escape!" snarled Xander.

"I have a getaway car all ready," replied Spike smoothly.

--

Angel glanced around at the Slayers who'd woken him up, blinking sleepily. "What?" he repeated, not sure he'd heard them.

"We're leaving," said the leader firmly.

There was a cough at the door and Giles entered. "We have a car waiting downstairs, Angel. Do you need a minute?"

He sat up, swinging his legs over the side of the bed, revealing that all he was wearing was a pair of silk boxers. At least one of the Slayers drew a quick breath at the sight.

_Ah, I still have it,_ thought his ego happily.

"Just give me a chance to get dressed," he said, the embarrassed part of his brain taking over.

"Of course," said Rupert, glancing to the girls.

They retreated, leaving Angel alone in his prison room. He chuckled at the thought appreciatively. Yesterday he'd had the free run of the entire government compound, but the Slayers were making it very clear that they wouldn't be as carefree when it came to it.

He supposed that Riley was so much more lax just because he'd been in league with Spike and Connor.

Angel began dressing in his black clothes carefully, putting the leather pants Angelus had been wearing back on. He didn't have any others, and he really wanted to find some soon.

Black leather pants just seemed so…evil.

He wished he could still feel his mental connection to Spike. As disturbing as that had always been, it had been a constant, even if a constant irritant. Now he was alone in his head, except for the link to Drusilla, and that was nowhere near as comforting as Spike's presence.

Somehow, in the time that Spike had worked with him at Wolfram and Hart, he'd come to rely on his Childe. Or, former Childe now that Spike was human.

He'd come to rely on the strength and unswerving moral character of Spike—and that thought was almost enough to make him laugh in the insane way Spike had taken to laughing.

Spike had earned his redemption, realized Angel. Spike had learned right from wrong the hard way, by attacking Buffy. He'd learned that his lack of a soul really did endanger those around him, in a way that nobody could have predicted.

And he'd used that knowledge, instead of brooding. He'd gone and changed himself into the sort of man Buffy deserved when he'd realized that he wasn't that man.

Angel gritted his teeth. Somehow Spike had become his _hero_, and that was so twisted and backwards that it really, really grated.

He was glad, though, that he was leaving as a prisoner. This would be a chance for him to relearn the hard lessons he'd forgotten. A chance for him to reevaluate his priorities.

A chance to rebuild everything Wolfram and Hart had destroyed.

The last time he'd gone to hell it had been body and soul, even with the demon thrown in. Angelus had been helpful, then, in surviving. The demon within him, the demon he could still feel struggling within him, was powerful, and had taken the brunt of the punishment.

This time, he'd been there alone. No demon. No body. Just himself, his soul.

He'd been insane when he returned from hell. This time his sanity was more or less intact, but he felt even more bruised, even more destroyed, than that first time.

He finished dressing and knocked on the door, stepping out into the room full of Slayers. "I'm ready," he said simply.

--

Xander glared at Faith as he was forced backwards by Spike's hand. "What about your loyalty to the rest of the Slayers?" he asked. "No way you're saying this is what they'd do."

"Maybe, but maybe it's the right thing," shot Faith. "Think about it a minute."

"You're letting an evil vampire free!" protested Xander.

"No, we're not," growled Spike. "We are going to keep her under lock and key. We're going to try and redeem her. Would your precious Slayers have done that?"

"You can't redeem someone forcefully!" said Xander, still protesting. He hated the way Spike was making him walk, the lack of control and the amount of trusting Spike he had to do just to keep going. And it was making him dizzy. "You of all people should know that! The chip is not enough!"

"Then we do it Angel-style and shove a soul down her throat!" snapped Spike, his eyes flashing with anger.

Xander swallowed in frustration and rage. "Faith!" he protested, loudly, looking away from Spike and focusing on her. She was pulling along Drusilla behind Spike. "Come on, this is insane!"

She glared at him. "I know that," she replied.

"And you're helping him!" yelped Xander. "Come on!"

"It was that or tell Angel," said Faith. "What do you want me to do!"

"We were going to take Drusilla with us!" snarled Xander. "Did he tell you that? Probably put her in the cell next to Angel!"

"Wouldn't like that, not since the Angel-beast won't shut up any more," said Drusilla, pouting.

Spike kept pushing Xander, pushing him around a corner and down another corridor. "I don't have time to discuss the moral and ethical implications!" he hissed. "You lot would use her, probably abuse her, and nobody deserves that! Nobody!"

"I resent that!" said Xander. "We never staked you, did we?"

Spike glared at the other man. "This is not about me," he said levelly. "Don't make this about me or I will kill you."

Xander rolled his eyes. "Oh, yeah, that's going to convince me you're not evil!" he snapped.

A loud wailing siren filled the room, causing Spike and Faith to both wince. Drusilla clapped her hands, laughing. "Now we'll run!" she reported happily.

Spike began running, practically lifting Xander off the ground and running with him. "Bugger!" he snarled.

Faith began running, surprised when Drusilla was able to match her pace despite the dress, still giggling.

--

Angel was in the parking garage with the Slayers when he heard the alarm go off. He sighed, working it out mentally in a matter of seconds.

"What the devil?" exclaimed Giles, looking around.

"Relax," said Angel. "Did you ask Riley for Drusilla?"

"Yes…why?" asked Giles suspiciously.

Angel shrugged. "I don't think Spike likes the idea, that's all," he said.

Giles' eyes widened in realization. He glanced around at the handful of Slayers with them. "All the others have gone—Faith! She's still here, somewhere!"

Angel frowned. "Um, she's here, actually."

Giles turned around, facing the four who had entered the parking garage. "Oh, bugger!" Yelled Spike, letting Xander go. Faith, holding Drusilla, hesitated. This hadn't been part of the plan at all.

"Faith?" said Giles, his eyes widening again as he realized she was helping Spike.

She shrugged. "Sorry," she said, looking away from him and at the vampire she was holding. Drusilla smiled wanly.

"Sorry," whispered the vampire.

Spike glared at the ring of Slayers, and glanced at the DeSoto at the other end of the garage. "Bugger!" he swore again.

Giles glanced at the Slayers with him, doing the mental math. "Um, Angel?" he asked quietly.

"Yeah?" said Angel, his voice lowered too.

"Do you want to let them go?" asked Giles.

Angel immediately made the connection. Giles was afraid that if he told the Slayers to stop Spike, Angel would start fighting too. In which case Spike would probably get away with Drusilla.

"That depends," said Angel carefully, watching Spike. "Can you give me a minute with him?"

Giles glanced at Angel, surprised by his answer. "Are you sure?" he asked.

"I need to know why he's doing this," said Angel.

"All right," said Giles, knowing already that he was going to regret this. If Angel ran off with Spike and Drusilla, then he'd probably have a heart attack.

Angel moved forward, closer to the ex-vampire and his crazy Childe. "Hello," he said cautiously.

Spike glared at him, ignoring the death look Xander was giving him as he inched cautiously away. "Look, you know as well as I that she doesn't deserve the treatment they'll give her!"

"Actually, she does," pointed out Angel seriously. "Evil, remember?"

"She's not that evil!" protested Spike, shifting his stance. His new stance was even more aggressive, and Angel felt a twinge of unease.

"You aren't going to fight me over this, are you?" asked Angel. Spike glared into the vampires' brown eyes, refusing to budge an inch.

"I am," whispered Spike.

Angel glanced to Faith. "Faith," he said quietly. "Why are you doing this?"

Faith glanced to Xander, then to Spike. She shrugged, and Angel could see the lost look in her eyes. "It was that or stop him," she said finally.

Angel nodded. "I know how you feel," he said with a sigh. "Look, this is an awful lot to put on my shoulders. Why didn't you ask us? Talk about it?" He glanced to Spike, directing the question at him.

"Because the Watcher won't like it, no matter how much I talk about it."

Faith swallowed. "Spike was talking about getting her a soul," she said quietly.

Angel glanced to Spike. "Lot's of people are bad despite their souls, Spike," he said quietly. "I stayed evil long after I got one."

"She's already in the insanity stage," joked Spike. "I'm sure that'll help her move on."

"Darla couldn't handle her soul," said Angel.

"I'll be there to help Dru through this," said Spike. "Come on, Angel!"

It was Spike's uncharacteristic use of his name that finally made Angel decide. "All right, William," he said. "But don't screw around with this. Do it right, and get it done." He glanced to Faith. "Are you going with him?"

She tightened her grip on Drusilla's arm. "Well, somebody has to keep him in line," she said, lacing her words with sarcasm.

Angel nodded, glancing to Xander, who glared back at him sullenly.

"You're letting them go," said Xander in disbelief. "I can't believe this!"

"You think it's a problem?" asked Angel.

"Isn't it obviously one?!" demanded Xander, stuffing his hands in his pockets defensively.

Angel shrugged. "Then go with them," he advised, turning and heading back to Giles. Giles was gazing intently at him, and he shrugged as he got closer.

"Well?" asked Giles.

"Spike wants to give back her soul, and although it's kind of risky, I think he should have that chance," said Angel. "He's still a little unstable, but Faith should be able to keep him on the straight and narrow. Do you trust her?"

Giles' eyes narrowed. "Don't put this on my shoulders!" he complained.

"Sorry," said Angel. "But I think this might be better for all concerned."

"We were going to hold him, too," sighed Giles. "Try to work through that instability…" He glanced at the group crowded near the door, watching them. "What about Xander? Is he part of this?"

"He seems to be a voice of dissent," said Angel, glancing back at them.

Giles sighed. "Well, I don't suppose I have much choice," he noted.

Angel smiled. "I'm sorry," he said. "Look at it this way. You'd never have been able to hold Spike for long anyway, and this way he's on a mission. Why don't you make it kind of semi-official, tell them you sanction it, tell Xander to go with them and report to you regularly."

Giles smiled. "So that way I'm placated, and we can both track them, eh?" he asked Angel.

Angel's smile widened. "Of course."

Giles sighed, approaching the group at the door. "I don't know why this surprises me," he muttered. "Spike, Faith." He swallowed, glancing to Xander, surprised by the sudden dryness in his throat. "Alexander. I understand you're all going on a quest to restore Drusilla's soul?"

"Yeah," said Spike roughly.

"Good, good," said Giles quickly, rubbing his hands together. They were damp. And his throat was dry. He could already feel the craving for alcohol to numb his poor, shell-shocked mind. "Xander, you will of course give me regular reports, I trust?"

Xander blinked. "What?"

"Well, if you and Faith are going on another of your adventures," said Giles, floundering a bit. "I trust you'll give me at least weekly reports, although I know you prefer monthly reports. But since you're, um, traveling with a vampire, I'll need the additional reports to make, um, make sure you're safe."

Xander scowled. "But…" he trailed off, unwilling to say he'd requested a reassignment in front of Faith. "Well, of course," he said.

Spike blinked. "I don't…" He frowned as the implications of the decision sank in. "Oh, I hate Angel," he muttered. "All right, yeah, we'll take him, we'll do this, sure," he snarled.

Drusilla blinked. "Then there'll be no fighting?" she asked, disappointed. "I so wanted to see my naughty boys fighting." The pout returned.

Faith chuckled. "Yeah, that would be a sight," she joked nervously, staring at the back of Xander's head. _Oh, god, no!_ she thought desperately. This was the worst possible outcome.

She'd be traveling with Spike and Drusilla, both of whom knew about her little obsession with Xander, and neither of whom could keep their moves shut, and Xander.

Giles nodded. "Great!" he said, a little too enthusiastically. "I'll, um, make sure you have the usual resources at your, um, disposal." He glanced to Faith. "Sorry," he added quickly, turning and striding towards his group of Slayers, who were watching suspiciously.

"Wow," said Xander. "I couldn't imagine the day getting worse, and then it did. Wow. Okay, Dead-boy Junior, lead the way."

Spike didn't say anything, walking straight forward. He gave Angel a nasty look as they passed, heading straight for the DeSoto.

"Oh, shotgun!" sang Drusilla gaily.

Faith glared at her. "No," she said shortly. "I get shotgun." She didn't want to be stuck in the back seat with Xander.

Drusilla pouted. "Not fair," she complained.

"What, and have her ride in the back with me? No way!" said Xander, staring at the vampire.

"Then you ride in the front with me, whelp," growled Spike.

Xander groaned. "Oh, great," he moaned.

A/N: Whenever they get into a great Mexican standoff like that I can just imagine the music from "The Good, The Bad and the Ugly" playing in the background. Dee-dee-dee… WAUGH WAUGH. Anyway, we didn't quite get to Angel's nice cell, or his cellmate, or any of the other wacky things a-happening! Although I do think I tipped my hand about the second half of the fic, and who the starring characters are.


	17. Road Trip

Disclaimer: I don't own a thing.

Summary: Post AtS and BtVS, Faith and Xander are approached by a secret government agency. Surprises all around.

Rating: PG-13

Chapter 17: Road trip

The DeSoto's backseat was tiny and cramped, decided Faith, leaning back and glaring at the back of Xander's head.

Drusilla, beside her, giggled. "I remember this car," she said. "It always reeked of blood and fire."

"Mostly cause of you, Dru," Spike reminded her. They drove on in silence, and Faith switched her glare to the white-blonde head in the driver's seat. She wondered if her stare could cause his head to catch fire.

Drusilla giggled, and leaned against Faith, resting her head on Faith's shoulder. Faith tensed up instantly, expecting an attack like Drusilla had sent at Spike, a bite at her neck.

"Ba-bump, ba-bump, ba-bump!" reported Drusilla happily. "Fresh and warm, trickling through every vein!" Her mouth shifted again into her near perpetual pout. "Now my Spike has it too," she said mournfully.

Faith couldn't decide whether the vampire leaning on her was creepy or amusing. On one level it was certainly disturbing to think about, but actually seeing a crazed master vampire talk about blood in that way was really, really funny.

Spike shifted, putting his left hand on the wheel and setting the other arm on top of the seat, his hand resting on the seat back next to Xander's shoulder. Xander shifted uncomfortably.

"What are you doing?" asked Xander, inching away from Spike—who was on his blind side. He couldn't think of anything to make him more uncomfortable with the situation.

"Just bein' ready to haul Dru off if she starts anything," said Spike shortly.

"Thanks, but I think I can handle anything your crazy ex tries," simmered Faith.

"Right, cause you're a Slayer," said Spike sarcastically. "And we all know no vampire has ever killed a Slayer. Oh, wait! I can think of an exception! Oops, no, two!"

"And both of them are in the car," said Xander. He reluctantly glanced into the back seat, feeling more than a little concern for Faith. Drusilla was dangerous, chip or no chip. Even without the chip, Spike had been a formidable foe.

He looked at the scene in front of him, and instantly went just a little bit into denial. No, the sight of a crazy vampire leaning her head into Faith's chest did NOT turn him on, not even a little bit.

He shifted back forward.

Faith, for her part, had seen the thought that instantly flashed across his face. She couldn't stop the quick smile that sprang to her lips. _Typical,_ she thought.

Then she frowned sourly, pushing Drusilla away. Another time she might have started messing with Xander's juvenile brain, but right now she was a little more concerned with the vampire hanging on her. "Where are we going?" she asked sourly.

"Only one way to get it done right," grumbled Spike. "We need some major mojo."

"The place you got it?" asked Xander. Spike turned, taking his eyes off the road to give Xander a scathing look.

"Nah," he said dryly, looking back at the road. "You gotta want it, to go there."

"And I don't," said Drusilla, smiling and leaning against Faith again. "Though the stars tell me my naughty William isn't going to let that stop him…not even if they burn him."

"Your stars have already burned me, Dru," said Spike. "No, we need some major magic."

"A wizard?" surmised Faith, squinting at Xander. "Witch? Why not ask Willow?"

"Because," said Spike patiently, although an edge had begun to creep into his tone. "Red is part of your little Scooby gang."

"And we're technically sort of on your side," said Xander. "We could phone this in as a favor."

"I doubt it," said Spike. "Sure, they played nice back there, but they'd take us back at the first chance. I'm not risking this mission on the good will of your lot."

Xander felt a familiar rage building up within him, and this time didn't bother bottling it in. "My lot? You mean the one that saved you from the First? The lot that kept you alive when you were evil instead of doing the sane thing and staking you? The lot that you tried to kill on multiple occasions?"

"You see? Bitterness," concluded Spike. "It's just not going to work out at all."

--

Giles frowned deeply in Angel's general direction while the vampire chatted with Riley's wife, Sam. Angel could feel the frown on his shoulders, but chose to ignore it. "So both women your husband had slept with before you were in the building," he mused. "I'm amazed you didn't do anything…aggressive."

"Well, I may have gotten a little chummy with Spike just to infuriate Riley," said Sam.

Giles continued talking with Riley. "It seemed the best solution, since Angel would have stepped in on their side."

"How do you know he would have?" asked Riley, curious.

"I asked him," said Giles flatly.

"Well, this wasn't exactly the way we intended this to go," said Riley, lying through his teeth. This was exactly as he had planned it--except for Faith and Xander, and the confrontation with Giles and the Slayers. "Still, you sort of have custody of Spike and Drusilla, in a manner of speaking--you're keeping tabs on them, at any rate." Which was something he was uncomfortable with…he'd hoped to be the only person keeping tabs on the ex-vampire.

"Yes, I am," muttered Giles. "Without quite as much force as I'd prefer. Still, perhaps its for the best. Keeping Spike and Drusilla in Slayer headquarters would have given me an ulcer for sure."

Riley smiled, glancing to his wife. "Honey?" he said quietly.

"Be sure to call and tell us how Connor's doing from time to time," she said quickly, shaking Angel's hand. "He's a great kid."

"I'll be sure to do that," said Angel, a bemused smile on his face.

As Riley and Sam left Giles glanced to Angel. "Do you buy that?" he asked quietly.

"Not for a minute," groused Angel. "He's way too much of a control freak to let this go that easily. Not only that, but he's a lousy liar."

"Yes, he is," agreed Giles. "Even more disturbing, I think that he and Spike may have planned this together."

Angel thought about it. "I don't think so," he said finally. "I don't think they like each other very much." In fact, the animosity between the two men was almost approaching the level of animosity between Angel and either of the two men.

"Still, I'll want to keep an eye on them both," said Giles. He glanced at the girls clustered around the van, waiting impatiently. "Er, shall we?"

"Certainly," said Angel, turning towards the van. As he climbed in, Slayers on every side of him, he briefly reflected that as a vampire among so many Slayers, he ought to feel afraid, not safer than he'd felt in a long time.

Still, even Wolfram and Hart's long arm would have trouble reaching him here.

--

Buffy's eyes fluttered open at the sound of clanking, and she looked over at Dawn, surprised to see her sister receiving a drink from the stewardess.

"That had better be soda," Buffy grumbled.

Dawn gave her a very fake smile. "Oh, good, you're awake," said the younger woman. "And it's just champagne, Buffy. I'd have to drink, oh, the whole bottle to get drunk."

Buffy sighed. "Did you get me any?"

Dawn shook her head. "Buffy and alcohol are un-mixy things," she said in her best mock-stern voice, which wasn't very good at all. Certainly, thought Buffy, not as good as Dawn's actually stern and adult voice.

"Right," agreed Buffy, leaning back in the seat. Her head felt like a container fully of humming marbles wrapped in cotton, and she swallowed once to clear the pressure in her ears.

Dawn carefully dipped her index finger in the drink, stirring it. "I know something you don't," she said quietly, no childish tone at all in her voice.

"What?" said Buffy, a little irritated.

"But if I tell you, you've got to promise you'll tell Giles I didn't," said Dawn, looking down into her drink and not meeting Buffy's eyes.

Buffy sighed, bringing her seat upright and glaring at Dawn. "Just tell me what you know, Dawn!" she said.

"Nuh-uh," said Dawn. "This is big, grown-up stuff, and I want immunity."

Buffy sighed. "I'll tell him that I had to torture at least three different people to put this together, okay?" she said, disgusted that she was giving in this easily.

"Thanks," said Dawn, a smile playing around her mouth. "Giles is keeping Angel and Spike in a dungeon in England till he decides to trust them."

"What?!" said Buffy, outraged.

"And Drusilla," added Dawn. "But that's probably okay."

Buffy thought about that. Her two demon lovers--although one of them was human now--held by her father figure in his metaphorical English dungeon. Setting aside the Freudian mess involved, she was still shocked. She knew that there were still a lot of trust issues to be ironed out, but she still hadn't expected this.

Of course, in retrospect it was startlingly obvious. She'd been told to leave, and Dawn had urged her to leave, because the others were all going back to England. She'd asked Giles about Spike and Angel, and he had told her simply to ask them where they planned to go.

She hadn't of course, because the thought of approaching either of them was terrifying at this point.

So she'd crankily slunk off in the middle of the night, getting on a plane back to Italy.

Giles hadn't lied, of course, she mused. He'd simply misdirected her, using her own fears and insecurities against her to protect her, because he knew that if she knew they were being held in England, that's where she'd go.

Maybe. If she could figure out what she'd say to either vampire.

Oops, there she went again, thinking of Spike as a vampire! It was hard to think of him as a human. He was just…inhuman. Different. Not human. Even if he had been the most human vampire she'd ever met.

She sighed, eyeing Dawn. "And you decided that Buffy should know the truth because…?"

"Geez, third-person much?" asked Dawn. "Well, besides being all too conscious of just how it feels to be protected, I thought maybe you'd like to know just what your demon lovers were planning. I mean, not that I think it's a bad plan. I have some trust issues with those guys, after all the crap they pulled. But, you know, that whole thing where we don't tell each other the whole story? That sucks."

Buffy smiled. "It took me a lot longer than that to figure that out," she admitted.

"Yeah, well, learn from others' mistakes. It's more fun," advised Dawn.

Buffy nodded her agreement. "Does this mean you're not about to lose your virginity to somebody who'll lose their soul the morning after and try to kill you?" she teased.

Dawn rolled her eyes. "First of all, it would take some colossal bad luck to find boyfriends as bad as you find. Second of all, the virginity? Puh-lease. You let me go to school in Europe, the inhibition-free side of the world."

--

Spike carefully locked the hotel room door behind him, glancing at the twin beds and then at the three sullen occupants glaring back at him.

This was his own personal purgatory, he decided. He was beginning to doubt that they had actually broken out of hell, and suspected he'd simply wandered into a spare torture chamber without realizing it.

Xander switched the TV on, searching through the channels. "Oh, good, SG-1 reruns," he said without too much enthusiasm.

Faith gave him a look that screamed 'geek.' Then she glanced back to Spike. "Two beds?" she asked sarcastically.

"Well, if your friend wasn't such a tightwad, we might have gotten two rooms," said Spike, wrapping his arms tightly around himself. He wanted his duster back, but apparently that wasn't going to happen.

"They have a low limit on the card," said Xander, embarrassed.

"Oh? Short leash?" asked Spike idly. He was dying for a cigarette, he realized. The craving was intensified, much worse than it had been before he took a cigarette from Faith. Smoking again had only made his struggle to quit even worse. The realization that it had been a mistake to smoke that cigarette rankled him.

Xander glared at him.

Drusilla wandered closer to the television. "I liked her when her hair was longer," she commented. She considered the screen a moment longer, tilting her head. "The burning fishes did too," she commented.

Spike nodded. "That's good, love," he said encouragingly, wandering over to the couch at the other end of the cramped room. "At least those fishes have good taste in hair."

Xander glanced at the crazy vampire, then to Faith, who was watching him. Faith glared back defiantly, waiting for the almost-funny comment she was expecting.

Instead of a comment Xander offered her a slightly sickly smile, the sort of smile she'd seen him give his friends when he was trying to patch things up between them.

Her stomach gave a happy lurch that she tried to quiet quickly. She had no reason to think he meant it as any sort of reconciliation, or as a peace offering. She just hoped it.

She quickly tried to return the smile with suddenly numb face muscles, aware that her smile must look like a mockery of his, like a sarcastic cut at him. She wasn't able to hold her eyes up, the eye contact suddenly painful. She looked down at the floor, avoiding his gaze.

Spike wandered back. "I can sleep on the floor," he said shortly. "One of you will have to sleep on the couch, and the other two will get beds."

"How will we--" Xander started to ask.

"Draw straws, arm wrestle, I don't care," said Spike shortly, clearly annoyed again. His nicotine shortage was really starting to drive him nuts.

Almost as nuts as just being human was driving him.

Xander gave a short snort of laughter. "Well, let's just assume we already arm wrestled, since I think we all know who's the weakest one here, and I'll take the couch."

Faith glared at him. A moment ago she had been about to offer the same solution, but now that he'd offered it he seemed mildly heroic, even altruistic, and that annoyed her even more. "I'll take the couch," she said shortly. She didn't want him to get too used to being the hero of the bunch.

Xander glanced from bed to bed, and then from the couch to both beds. "No offense, but I'd be most comfortable sleeping furthest from the vampire," said Xander nervously, not quite meeting her eyes.

Faith rolled her eyes. Had he read her annoyance with his virtue so easily and come up with a solution by making himself seem more selfish? Or had that been his concern all along? She really couldn't tell, and it annoyed her.

"All right, if you really want to," said Faith, throwing her hands in the air. "I need a shower." She turned and headed for the tiny bathroom.

Spike glanced back at her. "You need clothes to sleep in or anything?" he asked. "I packed some stuff for Dru in the car, and some of it might fit you."

Faith gave him a leer. "I don't wear clothes to sleep," she informed him. She marched into the bathroom, closing the door firmly behind her.

Spike's eyebrows went up, and he glanced to Xander. "You lucky dog," he drawled.

Xander looked away. "Lucky, right," he muttered.

Spike sighed. "I'll regret this in the morning…you need anything, monkey-boy? All the clothes are black, and I don't think the pants will fit, but I must have a shirt that'll fit you. Bought it all brand-new in LA, no icky Spike germs."

Xander glared at him. "We can stop and get some stuff in the morning," he said. "I'll just sleep in what I'm wearing."

"Fine," said Spike, nodding. He glanced to Drusilla. "Pass us some blankets and pillows, love?"

She tossed a pillow at his head with a giggle. "Living pure for your Slayer," she said coyly. "You naughty, naughty boy."

--

Angel watched Giles open the cell door, surprised by how nice the cell looked. "Uh, thanks," he said, stepping inside. There was thick carpeting, and the walls seemed to be padded with white foam. The bed was actually quite large, and there was a book shelf on one wall, filled with books.

Giles closed the door slowly. "We built it recently for, er, other purposes," he said softly. He glanced at the cell beside Angel's.

Angel followed his gaze and was surprised to see a form huddled in the bed, watching him from under a blanket, just a pair of eyes in the darkness. He was even more surprised to feel a twinge of memory at the sight.

"Oh," said Angel blankly. "Um, I guess I better get some sleep. I'll see you tomorrow, I hope?"

Giles nodded. "I'm leaving some guards…I hope that's not…?"

"Not at all," Angel assured him. "I understand your fears more than you'll ever know."

Giles nodded uncertainly. "Until tomorrow," he said, stepping out into the hall and marching away. Most of the Slayers followed him, while the others moved into guard posts that Angel couldn't see.

He turned, looking at the other cell.

The cells were opposite each other, separated by a hallway. Both were equipped with a bathroom behind a privacy screen, although Angel's was superfluous. They were perfectly symmetrical to each other, arranged in a perfect mirror, but several books were missing from the opposite book shelf, and there were a few items of clothing strewn about the cell.

Angel sat down on the bed. "Hi," he said softly. "I'm Angel. Kind of new to this cell block."

The figure shifted, and brought her head further up. She was an attractive brunette, and as soon as he saw her neck he remembered her. The insane Slayer who'd cut Spike's hands off in LA.

"Hi," she said, her voice quiet and trembling. "You're…?"

"Yeah, a vampire," he acknowledged. "But I'm … I have my soul." He couldn't quite make himself say he was a good vampire.

"Oh," she said, and pulled the blanket back over her head.

Angel sat down on his bed with a sigh, laying back on top of the covers.

He was slightly hungry, and the smell of the girl across the way wasn't helping. And the fact that her presence was making his mouth water disgusted him.

He closed his eyes, settling in for a long night.

--

A/N: Coming soon: can the gang get Drusilla a soul? If they do, will it make her good? Can Faith and Xander get past their history? And is Spike sane now? Well, forget that last question…it's dumb. Of course he's not! For answers to the rest, tune in next time.


	18. Want and need

Disclaimer: I don't own a thing.

Summary: Post AtS and BtVS, Faith and Xander are approached by a secret government agency. Surprises all around.

Rating: PG-13

Chapter 18: Want and need

Xander woke up with a start, blinking his gummy eyelids. For a moment the burning in his left eye didn't make sense, till he remembered that it was gone. He shifted position, glancing around the dark room.

He could see Spike lying on the floor beside him, a few feet away. The ex-vampire's chest was rising and falling rhythmically, and Xander just watched him blankly for a moment.

Then Xander's gaze moved over to the beds.

Faith was nearer him, lying on her side facing him. A sheet covered her completely, but he could see her face peeking out from under a corner of the sheet. For a long moment he stared at her.

Asleep her face was peaceful, much more peaceful than when she was awake. All the careful defenses she'd built up were down, and the makeup she wore like an armor was gone. In sleep she looked younger, happier.

Watching her sleep he could almost forget the times she'd tried to kill him.

There was a flash of light behind her, and he looked up in surprise into the yellow eyes that had suddenly flashed in the darkness behind Faith.

Xander felt his breath catch in his throat, surprised by the sudden appearance. He managed not to yell, slapping a hand over his mouth to hold back the girlish scream he could feel tickling the back of his throat.

Slowly the golden eyes faded back to black eyes, and Drusilla smiled at him. "The Slayer's white knight," she whispered.

Faith's muscles tensed, and her head rose up out of the sheets. Xander's eye lingered on the long curve of her neck for a moment, the stretch of white skin entrancing him. Faith rolled, facing the vampire, who looked down at her with a giggle.

"We don't sleep at night," she informed the Slayer. "It's not our way, either of us. We live at night, in the darkness, in the shadows. The stars burn brightly then, and not at all in the daylight."

"You're right," grumbled Faith.

Xander sank back down on the couch, deciding to feign sleep.

"We sleep at night," grumbled Spike, sitting up. The blanket he was under slid down, revealing that he was wearing a black tee. Xander was surprised by the clothes, knowing from the time they'd spent as roommates that the ex-vampire preferred sleeping in the nude.

Faith glanced back at him. "Yeah, the humans," she agreed. "The normal ones, anyway." She hesitated, the word normal poison on her tongue. "Aren't you some kind of super-powered demon hunter, kinda like me? Shouldn't you sleep during the day and fight at night?"

Spike groaned, standing up. He was wearing sweat pants, noted Xander, glancing back at Faith. She was looking at him, and for a moment their eyes locked. Both looked away at the same moment, uncomfortable with whatever was between them.

Spike staggered to the mini-fridge, grumbling. "I don't know what I am," he muttered.

"Have you tried sleeping during the day?" asked Faith, sitting up, irritated. The sheet slipped lower on her, and Xander's eyes followed the sheet down before he caught himself, closing his eye.

Then he heard someone stand and begin walking towards him. He mentally prepared himself for the possibility that it was Faith. 'Look at her eyes, look at her eyes,' he begged himself before opening his eye.

He wasn't sure whether it was a relief or not to see Drusilla standing over him, wearing a frilly floor-length nightgown that might have looked at home in the 18th century.

Drusilla sat down on the coffee table beside Xander.

"Dru!" said Spike from the far side of the room, a warning in his voice. "Play nice!"

Xander swallowed, moving backwards and sitting up to increase the distance between them. He was surprised everyone was getting up and moving, and supposed Faith and Drusilla must be feeling restless.

He couldn't understand why Spike would be feeling restless too, unless Faith was right that the ex-vampire was also naturally nocturnal.

Or maybe he just missed being nocturnal.

"I see a crossroads coming for you," whispered Drusilla. "A change that you cannot approve, blood and ashes driving you to the thing you hate."

Xander swallowed. "What?" he said plaintively.

Spike returned, a bottle of beer held loosely in his left hand. "You've got a choice coming up, between something you don't want and something you can't let happen," he said shortly.

"What? Are you sure?" asked Xander, still staring at the vampire.

Spike put a hand on Drusilla's shoulder. "You should go back to bed," he said gently.

She shook her head. "Steel and water, steel and water," she murmured. "All bathed in delicious pain and screams."

"That doesn't sound good for you," said Spike dryly, looking at Xander. "She does this all the time. I've had a good long time to learn how to interpret what she says--it's not hard, once you see the pattern."

"Pattern?" asked Xander nervously.

Spike shrugged. "It took me nearly fifty years to see that pattern," he warned Xander, shrugging. He glanced back at Faith, who'd put on some clothes and was heading for the door. "Going somewhere?" he asked her.

"I gotta go kill something," she muttered.

Spike smiled, and began to turn towards her, his mouth opening. He stopped in mid motion, looking back at Drusilla and Xander, his mouth twisting in a frown. Xander knew exactly what was going through his head, the desire to leave and hunt, warring with the responsibility to keep Drusilla away from Xander. While Spike stood there indecisively, Faith unlocked the door and slipped outside, slamming the door behind her.

"Bollocks," muttered Spike.

--

Angel woke up when the lights came on, and sat up quickly, his hands rising to shield his eyes. His entire body was tense, expecting his skin to start burning.

It didn't. He blinked, focusing on the lights above him. He looked around, searching for a light switch.

"They're on a timer," said the girl in the opposite cell helpfully. "Six-thirty sharp."

"Ah," he said, feeling foolish. "Uh, good morning," he offered, not sure exactly how sane she was. She'd sounded coherent so far, but he'd seen crazy people act sane before.

Just look at Spike for proof of that.

She frowned at him, sliding up off the bed. She was wearing drab gray sweatpants and a white tee, and was watching him just a little too closely, in an almost predatory manner. He cleared his throat, approaching the bars and leaning against them, intentionally adopting an easy manner. "I'm Angel," he said, trying to keep his voice non-threatening.

She watched him lean against the wall with eyes that didn't seem to blink often enough. "Dana," she said shortly.

He nodded, trying out an encouraging smile. She didn't react, and he let it slip off his face. That she was behind bars said volumes for her mental health, and her bursts of coherency seemed short-lived. "How've you been doing?" he asked, opting for the direct approach.

She shrugged. "Drugged. Bored. A little angry," she said, each word carefully emphasized.

Angel nodded, glancing back at the bookshelf behind her. There was something both melancholy and predatory about her, something that he wasn't at all sure he ought to understand as well as he did.

She was a Slayer, and that instinct was stronger than her sanity right now. Soul or no soul, he would have to be careful. He knew better than most just how dangerous a person in a cage could be.

He shuddered at the thought of Angelus, and how without one part of him to restrain himself he could do the things he'd done.

"Scared?" asked Dana.

"Maybe," said Angel, feeling an itching in his fingers. The itch seemed to cry out for blood, and his stomach growled to remind him just how hungry he was. "Scared of myself, mostly."

"Because you're a vampire," said Dana, a note of sarcasm in her voice. Or maybe it was just sorrow, and he'd been around Spike too long.

"I wasn't always a good vampire," said Angel. "It's not…there are a lot of reasons I fear myself."

Dana watched him, a scowl on her face.

--

There was no allure left in Drusilla for Spike, no charged looks, no heated exchanges. It surprised him that there wasn't more tension, more longing.

After all the time he'd spent in love with her, he'd expected that this time spent with her would be painful. But it wasn't. All the lovable things that she did were still cute, and all her babbling still made perfect sense to him, and him alone.

But there was no pain, no searing agony from being so close and not possessing her. Certainly nothing like he'd gotten from Buffy when they'd spent time together so long ago, before he'd died, again.

Xander was snoring, an annoying wheezing that aggravated Spike. Drusilla was just watching TV now, flipping from channel to channel as the stars commanded.

Spike lay back on the floor, winding one arm beneath his head as a pillow and trying to make sense of his life.

His plan was insane. He knew that. He was crazy, not stupid.

But it was all he had, right now, the only shreds of sanity he clung to. He was going to do right by his girl, going to do something to save her, to keep her safe from everything that would try to destroy her.

Even if he didn't love her any more.

He would have gnashed his teeth, if he was certain exactly what that was.

He settled for grinding them, which startled Xander awake. Spike glanced at the boy, who gazed around the darkened apartment, finally settling his gaze on the television. "Ugh," groaned Xander.

Spike stood up, disgusted with his surroundings and tired of the company. "Here," he said, pulling a small cross off the dresser where he'd left it. "Your defense against Dru," he said off Xander's blank look.

Spike paused to find a pair of black jeans, and even stepped into the bathroom to put them on, in deference to Xander. That he was showing deference to Xander at all gave him a sickening twinge of regret.

When he'd stayed with Xander he'd gone out of his way to make the boy uncomfortable. Even now he could feel the urge to taunt and torment the younger man welling up deep inside him. He pushed it back, rushing out the door.

He didn't need any advanced sense of smell to find Faith. She was sitting on a park bench across the road. Spike sighed, heading out.

"I take it I won't be finding any vampires to kill," he said shortly.

"No, none," she said bleakly, looking away from him.

"So you went looking, but didn't find anything, and then couldn't face the whelp?" asked Spike irritably.

She shrugged, still not looking at him.

"Great," he muttered, sitting down beside her. "You know, cowardice is supposed to be my big thing."

Faith shrugged again. When Spike's hand landed on her shoulder she tensed up, surprised by the contact.

"You need to talk to him," muttered Spike. "Love can get messy if you don't handle it right."

"Love?" said Faith, laughing, finally turning and meeting his eyes. "Who said anything about love? I didn't. I don't know love. I don't understand love. How could I? I don't even believe in love."

Spike snorted. "You don't believe in love? I live my life by it." He gave her shoulder a quick squeeze, standing up.

"It's just lust, just an animal need, nothing more," sneered Faith. "I want Xander. I need Xander. I don't love him! It's just tension between Xander and I, that's all. I just need a good lay to get him out of my system."

"Doesn't work," advised Spike. "I got Buffy, didn't I? And I just ended up further away from her, when all was said and done." He marched away from her, back towards the motel room.

--

Connor hated sitting through his math class. Math was the most boring subject in the world, he decided.

At least in his other classes he could see some sort of usefulness to it. His Latin class had already helped him track down some nasty Polgara demons, and his Lit class had introduced him to some books that kicked butt when it came to identifying demons.

But math class didn't help at all.

As the teacher dismissed the class he headed for the door, hoping to catch Rachel before lunch.

He saw the strawberry blonde waiting for him, leaning against his locker, and felt his heart lurch. The look on her heart-shaped face was too serious, too somber, and he knew she wouldn't have good words for him.

"Hi, Rachel," said Connor cautiously, moving closer.

"Nice to see you," she said sarcastically. "Where've you been for the last month?"

"Uh, I had a family emergency," he said.

"Yeah, some emergency!" she snapped. "Your mom called!"

Connor felt his heart lurch again. "She called? What did you tell her?"

"The truth, that I haven't seen you in forever!" said Rachel scathingly. "You just lied to me, you jerk! Where were you really?"

Connor frowned. "Now I have to call mom. Great," he muttered.

Rachel pushed herself away from the wall, glaring right at him. "Don't give me that!" she snapped. "You're lying to me, you never let me know where you are, what you're doing… I've had just about enough of you."

She turned to walk away, and Connor felt his stomach give another lurch, this time one that felt like it fell right out of his body.

He just watched her go, unable to think of anything to say to make it better. "Yeah, good work on the secret identity front," he muttered under his breath, taking his cell phone out of his pocket and taking a deep breath.

--

Giles was surprised by the knock on the door, and as he slowly opened it, blinking at the bright sunlight outside, he wondered if he could possibly have been mistaken about the voices he'd thought he heard.

Buffy and Dawn were standing on the front porch, both of them casually smiling at him in a perfectly innocent way.

Giles wasn't stupid. He gave Dawn a hard look. "That was hardly mature, Dawn," he informed her. He stepped back, giving them room to enter. "Angel is upstairs," he told Buffy.

"Where's Spike?" she retorted.

Giles felt a half smile forming on his face, a very smug one. She'd asked the question, giving him the perfect opening to say exactly what he wanted to about Spike. It was a moment to be savored. "He ran away with Drusilla," he said slowly.

Both girls were stunned by the words. They exchanged a glance, then Dawn figured it out. "You wanted to bring her here, and he took her away!" she said.

"Indeed," said Giles, smiling. "He said he'd find her a soul somewhere…would you like to see Angel?"

Buffy took a deep breath. "I guess I have to," she muttered.


	19. Revenge and Vengeance

Disclaimer: I don't own a thing.

Summary: Post AtS and BtVS, Faith and Xander are approached by a secret government agency. Surprises all around.

Rating: PG-13

Chapter 19: Revenge and vengeance

When Spike returned to the hotel room he was in a foul mood. Faith had challenged the existence of love—true love, even—and that was the deadly sin, as far as he was concerned.

He didn't like to admit it, but he was a romantic at heart. He might be a cold-hearted cynic, but he still believed in love with every beat and fiber of his cold, dead heart.

He stomped past Drusilla, who was watching TV again, and sat down on the floor, on top of the messy pile of sheets that had served as his bed.

Xander was sitting up, watching the TV, and looked at Spike with bleary eyes, a hint of malice behind his gaze.

"What?" snapped Spike.

"No demons?" asked Xander.

"Bloody woman is demon enough," growled Spike, clutching his head in both hands. "I wish I could just kill her."

"Whining about the good old days doesn't help," sighed Xander. "Take it from me."

"Oh? What good old days did you have?" spat Spike.

"When Faith and I just slept together, or she'd just try to kill me," replied Xander. "Now it's all complicated."

Drusilla looked back at them, grinning. "Death and dying," she predicted.

Spike shook his head, glaring around the room. Then he grabbed his bag from the corner of the room and pulled a notebook out of it, opening it up quickly, flipping to the first empty page. He pulled a pen from the spine, and began writing.

"Whoa," said Xander. "What is that? An evil spellbook? Evil journal? And since when can you write?"

"Little something I've been picking up recently," he replied.

Xander leaned forward, reading it. "What?" he said, confused. "That's not a complete sentence!" he accused, sitting back.

"It's not supposed to be," said Spike, his voice scathing, closing the book. "Like you said, it's magic. Very dark, very dangerous."

Xander glared at him for a minute, folding his arms. "You do realize that's a load of crap, right?"

"Complete load," agreed Spike.

Xander sighed, standing up and stretching. "God, I'm not going to get ANY sleep tonight, am I?" he asked wearily.

Spike watched the boy, sneering. "You look like you haven't got a whole night's sleep in a long, long time," he said.

Xander shrugged, trying to act nonchalant. "Nightmares," he said vaguely.

Spike shuddered. "Been there," he said, his voice low. "Every night, I dreamed of English. I didn't see him fall, so that was the worst. Never knowing how he fell. And Charley. And Blue. And dying, of course." He looked down at his hands, and Xander found himself feeling sorry for the former vampire.

It wasn't a comfortable feeling, and he immediately tried to banish it. "So, breakfast?" he asked cheerfully.

Spike shrugged mournfully. "I miss the blood," he admitted. "Nothing tastes as good as blood. Nothing's as sweet, strong, and intoxicating."

Xander hesitated, grossed out. "So, breakfast?" he asked again, no cheer left in his voice.

Drusilla rose up off the bed, swaying in time to nonexistent music. "Yes, please," she said sweetly.

Xander giggled nervously. "Um, just to be clear, pig's blood for you," he squeaked. "Not me."

She pouted. "Very well, let's all eat of poppy and swine," she agreed.

"What?" said Xander, still uncertain.

"The blood's drugged," said Spike. "I didn't think she'd cotton to it so quick, but she'll always surprise you." A nostalgic smile passed across his face. "Every time," he added, redundantly.

Xander was glad they were back on familiar ground, where he could easily hate the blonde. "Just keep her on that blood and not mine and we'll be fine," he grumbled.

Drusilla smiled mysteriously, her head tilting back. "I can see it…a glorious moment of spark and burning, and then freedom," she whispered. "Soon my spark will come."

Spike smiled encouragingly. "That's right, love. Soon you'll have a soul, and then you'll understand true freedom."

Drusilla glanced at him, her mysterious smile widening. "Soon," she promised.

* * *

Buffy entered the room quietly, glancing at the bars on both sides of the corridor, searching for Angel.

The room was lit only with fluorescents, and there was an unearthly pallor surrounding the bars, bathing it all in an unholy atmosphere of fear and death.

Angel sat up on the bed, surprised, dropping the book he'd been reading aloud. The girl in the opposite cell also sat up, scowling.

"Who're you?" she asked.

"Uh, I'm Buffy," replied the Slayer, frowning. "Hello," she added, a bit awkwardly.

Angel moved closer to the bars, one corner of his mouth curving up in a smile. "Buffy," he said softly. "I…" He cut himself off, frowning. "You shouldn't be here!" he accused, his mouth twisting in a pout. "Don't you know…no, I guess you wouldn't, would you?" He sighed, moving back to the bed.

"Know what?" asked Buffy.

"That it's a bad idea for you to be here," said Angel mournfully. He smiled at her. "You aren't mad, are you?"

"Mad? At you or at Giles?" asked Buffy sweetly.

"Either. Both," answered the vampire. "It is really good to see you again."

"Yeah?" asked Buffy, a bit combatively. Angel winced. "That's one of those reasons you ran off, right?"

He frowned. "I guess it is, in a way," he said.

"Because a mostly platonic relationship with me just wasn't enough," said Buffy, a bit angrily.

Angel sighed. "Because even if we weren't sleeping together, I was still too happy to be with you," he said softly. His smooth voice grated against Buffy's ears. "Because even without the sex, I was happy enough that my soul was in danger. Is that what you want to hear?"

Buffy stood there, nonplussed. "Actually, I was mostly hoping for an angry response so that I could believe you'd changed," she finally said.

He shrugged. "I've changed," he said wearily. "I had a son. I fell in love with Cordelia, and lost her. I fed a room full of lawyers to Darla and Dru. I've done things I'm ashamed of, and even more things I didn't even realize at the time I should have been ashamed of. But I was still trying to do the right thing."

Buffy stared at him. "Cordelia?" she said finally.

Angel shrugged mysteriously. "It was a thing," he said, his face impassive.

* * *

Faith seriously considered simply leaving, walking off into the night and finding her own way. It was an attractive idea, on many levels.

But it wouldn't solve her deepest problems, and she was just coming to terms with facing those.

She stood up and headed inside when it was coming close to dawn. She knew that Spike wanted to leave, and drive in the daylight hours, while Drusilla would be at her weakest.

Inside Spike and Xander were eating, watching a talk show. They weren't talking, just throwing the occasional hostile glare at each other. Drusilla was standing in the kitchenette area, staring a toaster.

Faith sighed. "Ready to get going?" she asked.

"Drusilla needs to eat, first," said Spike.

"Me too," said Xander sourly.

"We can stop for coffee and Danishes somewhere," responded Spike.

Xander shot an angry look at Spike. "Or I could just eat something here and now," he replied.

Spike shrugged. "Well, we have…blood. And…blood," he said, smirking at the younger man. "Are you sure you want to eat here?"

"All right, I can take a hint," growled Xander angrily.

But he didn't get up, and neither did Spike.

* * *

Dawn carefully examined her e-mail, searching for anything from the Devon coven. If there was some mystical significance to Buffy's recent trip to hell with Spike and Connor, she really wanted to know about it.

But there was nothing except a cryptic message from _AiredaleTrekkie _that he'd returned to Italy, as per their plans, and was continuing their surveillance on the remaining Wolfram and Hart office.

Dawn felt vaguely concerned for Andrew's safety. Often the Scoobies sent him off without thought or concern for his welfare, but she was more than a little fond of the odd nerd.

Not that she'd say that out loud. Given their relative ages, she knew half the Slayers expected them to just shack up—and that was something that would compromise them both. There wouldn't be even a hint of it, ever.

Still, she felt responsible for him. She quickly typed up a reply telling him to be careful, that the information they'd received from Spike and Angel so far indicated that Wolfram and Hart was deadlier than they'd expected, and more vindictive.

There was another message from Oz, three weeks old. She opened it and scanned it, but it wasn't much more than a postcard. Thailand. Miss you all. She didn't bother replying; she'd learned a long time ago that no matter what she put in her reply, he wouldn't acknowledge it.

She closed her e-mail and shut the computer off, then stood up, glancing around the room.

"Hey, still there?" she asked.

The young Slayer detached herself from the shadows. "How do you do that?" she asked, far more impressed then she should have been. "I was doing everything Kennedy taught me about being stealthy!"

"Yeah, well, maybe it was a guess, or maybe you did something wrong," grumbled Dawn. "It doesn't matter. Either way, I knew you were there."

The Slayer grimaced. "You're here about the vampire, right?" she asked, ignoring Dawn's twisted logic. Dawn nodded unhappily. "I don't get the whole soul thing," said the girl, pleadingly. "Can you explain it?"

Dawn laughed. "I am SO the wrong person to explain it," she said harshly.

"Oh, c'mon!" whined the Slayer. "Giles wouldn't explain it at all, he just cleaned his glasses and mumbled about guilt and stuff!"

"Yeah, he doesn't buy it either," grumbled Dawn.

"What?" said the Slayer, surprised by Dawn's blunt response.

"You want to know what a soul is? It's an excuse." The Slayer was silent, staring at Dawn with wide eyes. "It's what your best friend goes to get after he tries to rape your sister, and then they all act like it just didn't happen. It's what your sister's boyfriend loses when he sleeps with her, and then when he does get it back, they act like that didn't happen either. It's the world's biggest excuse for guys acting like Cro-Magnon jerks, and it sucks!"

The Slayer stared at Dawn, her mouth hanging open. She shut it with a snap. "Wow. Issues?"

"You have no idea," said Dawn, sighing. "It's this whole mess. Want some Cocoa or something?"

"Um, sure," said the Slayer, suddenly much more unsure than she had been before, when this had been an impersonal assignment. Watch the Slayer's sister. She doesn't have powers. Just keep her out of trouble.

Nobody had said anything about issues.

* * *

Angel sat on his bed, scowling. "I'm just tired of it being all about Spike, that's all," he snapped.

"Didn't Spike save you?" asked Buffy, bemused.

"Yes!" snapped Angel. "And I don't even want to go into how much I resent him for that!"

"You resent the fact he saved you?" asked Buffy.

"He's always there with some quick quip," grumbled Angel. "I had one, ONE good line for him. That time we were fighting, he was blasting away at me with all my faults, but I saved up my one trump card, one I already knew he was all over. And he…trumped it. Pow."

"What was it?" asked Buffy.

Angel shifted uncomfortably. "Just some stupid thing I'd topped him at," he mumbled. "It doesn't matter any more. That was back when he'd just become corporeal."

"When he got a body," interpreted Buffy. "I'm amazed he didn't come running to me then. Even with all his talk of being his own man, and growing, and moving on…"

"He didn't move on," mumbled Angel quietly.

"What?" said Buffy.

"He didn't move on. He hasn't moved on." Angel looked as if the words were physically hurting him. "Spike doesn't move on."

"He said he had," Buffy reminded him. Angel snorted angrily.

"And Spike never lies," he said sarcastically.

"I'll never get why you two hate each other so much," she sighed.

"At the core of it, he'll never understand why I do what I do," snapped Angel. "He'll never understand why I left Sunnydale the first time…" Angel trailed off.

The truth that he'd been denying for weeks suddenly slapped him in the face. Spike did understand that sacrificial love now, even if he hadn't before. Spike had done the same thing, staying in LA with Angel. He'd allowed Buffy to move on.

Spike had grown.

Angel groaned, dropping his head into his hands. "I really, really hate Spike," he muttered. "All he ever does is make me look like the immature one."

Buffy laughed. "It isn't Spike," she assured him.

The whole deal, sitting on the other side of the bars and talking to him, was bothering her. The crazy Slayer, Dana, was pretending to read, but darting knowing glances at them in the meantime.

Buffy glanced to Dana, taking advantage of Angel's sudden brooding spell. "So, how're you doing?" she asked.

Dana shrugged. "Better," she said shortly.

"Good, good," said Buffy.

"I was just trying to explain to Angel about why I cut Spike's hands off… he thinks it was an overreaction," said Dana, proud to be able to contribute something to the conversation. Buffy choked, and Dana nodded sagely. The expression of surprise was a clear indication that she understood the necessity of cutting his hands off.

"I sowed them back on," said Angel.

"What!" screamed Buffy, staring at Angel.

"Well, not me. My medical staff. They reattached his hands. Although the tissue was dead, a vampire naturally regenerates, so he was able to… um, yeah, Spike got his hands cut off and put back on. He wasn't really that freaked out about it, after we put them back on." Angel was appropriately apologetic, but he remembered all too well the nice feeling of 'I-told-you-so' that had suffused him when he'd seen the suffering vampire.

And now Spike wasn't a vampire any more. Why did he have to keep reminding himself of that?

He really would like to see some quality Spike suffering again, before Spike died.

Which was an inevitability now, not an 'if.' Spike was human. Mortal. He wouldn't make two hundred, unless he was particularly careful—something Angel knew he wasn't.

And why, if he hated Spike so bloody much, did that hurt? It shouldn't hurt. He should be happy he was finally getting rid of Spike.

Buffy finally had collected herself. "You know Spike, Dana?" she said.

"Nope," said Dana cheerfully. "We really only met once or twice. And I cut his hands off."

Buffy rolled her eyes. "Right, of course. That makes sense."

"Um, she was channeling the Slayer memories," said Angel. "The ones where he killed two Slayers."

"What!" said Buffy angrily. "Did she miss the one where he saved my life? Or Dawn's life? Or burned up for the world?"

Dana stared at her. "Duh, you're not dead," she pointed out logically. "I can't have YOUR memories."

Buffy thought about that for a second. "You know, that logic would work…if I hadn't already died once, AFTER Spike had saved the world…twice. Maybe more, if you count the times I paid him to do it…"

Angel shook his head, shaking off the terrible feelings that arose in him when he was reminded that his Childe (grand-Childe? Screw these vampire names!) had saved the world. Shouldn't he be proud, or something?

* * *

Faith rummaged in the mini-fridge, hoping against hope that there would be alcohol there. But if there had been, Spike had already nicked it.

She really hated him. He was the complete antithesis of Angel, who could be gentle and caring and help you face your demons. He was the antithesis of Xander, who could be completely wrong and still make you feel good about yourself just by being willing to lavish praise on you.

He was the most annoying vampire ever to claw his way up through the dirt to life, and she really wanted to kill him.

Spike, in the meantime, was staring out the window. "Dru, eat," he called back to the kitchen.

Drusilla was sitting on the counter, holding a bag with blood in it. She shook her head petulantly. "It's not time yet!" she snapped.

"It's past bloody time, Dru!" snarled Spike, turning around. "We should've left hours ago! Now we're bloody well behind!"

Drusilla giggled, looking at Faith with those dark, dark eyes. She was a lot like the dolls she prattled on about, realized Faith. The Victorian ideal, actually. The realization almost made her laugh out loud.

"No, it'll be time…tick tock, tick tock," giggled Drusilla. "I saw it, you know. And I'm never wrong."

Spike frowned, realizing something at that point. "Dru, what'd you see?" he asked.

"Why did I think I could kill you so easily?" sighed Drusilla. Faith blinked.

"What does she mean by that?" she asked.

Spike shrugged uncomfortably. "It was, you know, part of the whole 'demon armies out to kill us' bit Angel and I were doing," he said awkwardly. "Dru, what did you see?"

"Freedom, such as you never imagined!" she whispered, darting forward, grabbing the toaster.

The TV was still on, and Xander was halfheartedly watching it. It made a popping noise, and the picture disappeared, as the power went out.

Faith understood very little about electricity, but in jail she had learned that you never wanting to be touching something electrical, or to be in a shower, during a lightning storm. The surge of electricity that came in through the outlets could kill you.

Drusilla's hand was in the toaster when the electricity surged through the hotel room, and she arced backwards with a scream of pain. Faith could smell the flesh sizzling.

"Bloody—stay back!" snarled Spike, jumping forward.

He was too late. Drusilla darted up, punching Faith so suddenly and so hard that she flew backwards, slamming into the hard wall and crumpling up into a ball.

Then Drusilla spun, her dress flaring, petticoats showing as she slammed into Spike with both hands, claws out. He was bashed back, to the floor, ragged trails across his face.

"Aah!" screamed Xander, realizing suddenly what was happening. He stood up to run away, and Drusilla moved to follow him.

But Faith was faster, already up. The instant she'd seen the danger to Xander she'd felt something snap, and she didn't bother hiding it. With a scream of indignation she leapt at Drusilla, sending hard blow after hard blow down on her.

Drusilla blocked and returned, blow for blow. She was as strong as Spike, easily as strong as Faith, and deadly. She had almost two hundred years of practice, and she'd never hidden behind Spike during those times he had brought mobs down on them.

Then Drusilla got in a good hit, knocking Faith back. "And the sun is out, behind the clouds," she giggled.

Spike got up behind Faith. "We can take her together," he rumbled.

Drusilla slipped out the door.

"Bugger!" cried Spike, patting his jeans. "She took my keys!"

Faith ran out in time to see their car making tracks. She glared out at it, then glanced back to Spike. "She picked a cloudy moment to make her break. In a car that has…what did you call it? Vampire proof glass? Anyway, she's high and dry."

Spike was staring out at the car, which had disappeared. "I'm such a fool," he whispered. "She had a vision earlier…she knew this would happen! She planned it!" He grimaced. "She was always better at the plans than I was."

"So, we'll go after her?" asked Xander, coming out behind them.

"Hm?" said Spike. "Uh, no. She'll be coming after us, with all the hounds of hell."

"What!" asked Xander, freaking out.

"Because she was one of the assassins supposed to kill you and Angel," muttered Faith.

Spike nodded. "Now she'll tell them where we are, and we're buggered," he sighed. "Better get ready to run."

* * *

A/N: I know, I ought to have all my notes at the beginning. However, it's much more fun to talk to you AFTER the big plot twist of the day has been revealed. Listen, I'm sorry I'm not updating. I just finished writing my first manuscript (joy!) and now I must try to sell it. It's really different from the work I do here, so… well, if you happen to read some cheap paperback, and think, "I know that particular style of stupid writing!" just don't think too badly of me. (sell out that I am) Anyway, I'll try to update more regularly. And I think this whole plot line with Dru will finally help those who've been confused to see what's going down… reread the summary, if you will. There are three names there. Do you think there's a reason I put those three names in the summary? I do. Ciao, catch you next update. 


	20. Assassin

Disclaimer: I don't own a thing.

Summary: Post AtS and BtVS, Faith and Xander are approached by a secret government agency. Surprises all around.

Rating: PG-13

Chapter 20: Assassin

They left the hotel quickly, searching for another vehicle. Spike led the way, the bag he'd carried in over one shoulder. He was carrying a shotgun in his left hand and a sword in his right, glaring around the foggy parking lot foully.

Xander was behind him, holding only a stake he'd fashioned out the bed's headboard.

Faith followed them, holding the other sword, the match to the one Spike held. "Where are we going?" she asked, all too aware of the noise they were making.

Especially Xander.

Spike stopped at the end. "Looks like a pretty bad patch for a fight," he sighed. "The sun will give us some cover against vampires, but only till sunset."

"What?" demanded Faith. "Come on, let's get out of here!"

Spike shook his head, pointing. "They're here," he said darkly.

They were.

Dark forms were moving in the mist, tall demons with green scaly skin and long claws. Faith could hear something distant howling, and she felt her stomach turn over. She glanced at Xander, who was looking balefully at the stake in his hand.

She grabbed it from him quickly, sticking it into her waistband. "I'll need that later, I guess," she said, trying to gauge how many they were facing. They seemed surrounded already.

"Can you still shoot straight, wanker?" demanded Spike.

"Mostly," said Xander nervously.

Spike tossed him the shotgun. "I have more weapons in my bag," he said shortly. "You run short, just yell. Slayer, concentrate on those green demons. They pack a nasty punch, whatever they are."

Faith glowered at him. "Oh, that's helpful. It really is."

Spike smirked. "More than you know, love," he said, twirling in a circle. "Last time I saw them, I died."

Then the demons charged forward, roaring.

Spike spun into action, the sword in his hand dancing. Faith felt something hit her from behind, and she fell down, face-first. She groaned, feeling something gritty sticking to her face, but managed to roll over, slashing with her sword.

She felt hot wet blood splatter on her face, and the thick, tangy smell of something foul filled her nostrils. She spluttered and choked, but kept moving.

She could hear gunfire, and knew that Xander was still standing—for now. She felt a small panic strike her as she remembered that he was here. He would try to get into the hottest fighting, and probably get killed, if she couldn't stop him.

She spun, striking out at the demons around her. They were fast, faster than anything that big should be. As Spike had said, lethal.

But she was a Slayer, not just some vampire fighting the good fight. She used her off-sword hand to pummel one while impaling another neatly on her sword. She heard a noise behind her and whirled, kicking, while pulled her sword free, searching for another target.

She couldn't see any more, besides the ones still wiggling on the ground. Nearby Spike was finishing off another one, slashing bits off it with a furious expression on his face. Xander was standing behind him, watching with a neutral expression while he reloaded the shotgun.

"Did that pea-shooter do any good?" spat Faith, lopping the head off one of the demons on the ground.

"Better than I would have thought," said Xander.

"The bullets are blessed, etched with crosses, doused in holy water, and all those other beautiful things," grumbled Spike, finally finishing the demon in front of him. "These lot came in on motorcycles," he added.

"How can you tell that?" asked Faith. She glanced back at what was left of the ugly green demons at her feet, finishing the last of them with a quick jab in the back of his head. The bones turned her sword, but he still stopped wriggling.

"The bikes are over there," said Spike, nodding at them. "We've got to get a move on, before the next bunch show up. Now that they know I'm here, it's going to be pretty hard to get out of here."

Faith glared at him skeptically. "Says you," she pointed out.

Xander glanced at her in surprise. "Aren't the demon hordes that follow him everywhere proof enough?" he blurted out. "I mean, much as I hate to admit it, if they're that mad at him, doesn't that kind of prove he did something right?" He stopped, thinking about that for a minute. "No, no it doesn't, does it?" he said softly, remembering another time Spike's actions had brought demons down on them.

"Sod it!" growled Spike. "I've had enough of you lot and your suspicions! I'm going, before the bloody cavalry gets here."

He strode off towards the motorcycles. Faith glanced at Xander. "Can you drive one?" she asked.

He winced. "Driving's kind of chancy, since the eye," he reminded her. "Balance-based driving, even more so."

Faith considered his options for a second, hoping like hell that he wasn't thinking as fast as she was. "Well, I can't drive a bike that well," she temporized quickly. "You'd probably drive me right off the road."

Spike turned around. "He is NOT riding with me!" he said angrily.

"Well, he's not riding with me!" Faith shot back.

Xander sighed. "I can drive myself," he said. "But it means we'll go slower."

"Bloody hell!" snarled Spike. His glare cut through Xander and Faith like hailstones through a tissue-paper tent, shredding their defenses. "I am not letting your issues with each other destroy a perfectly good escape attempt, you got that?"

He climbed on a bike, starting it fast. "You ride with me or you ride with her, monkey-boy!" snarled the ex-vampire in his hard, rough voice that felt like sandpaper over all of Xander's wounds.

Xander gritted his teeth and climbed on behind Spike.

As they roared away, Faith close behind them, Spike chuckled. "Look at the pair of you, acting like a bunch of middle-school gits," growled the vampire, loud enough that Xander was able to hear him.

"Shut up!" snarked Xander, leaning back so he wasn't touching the vampire. This made his position on the bike precarious, but he didn't care.

Spike was silent, keeping a careful watch out all around them for more demon hordes. Now that they'd found the scent again, the head honchos would be all over him.

Or, rather, those left on earth. A slow smile curved around his face at the memory of his big victory—Angel's big victory—against Wolfram and Hart.

That he had done what Angel could not was a victory so sweet he almost wanted to cry. That he had managed to save Angel, make Angel the damsel in distress, was icing on his cake.

That Xander was behind him, his ugly, knobby knees pressing against Spike's legs, was just another irritation in the millions he had absorbed.

Spike pulled over when they were a few miles away from the motel, choosing a greasy spoon that looked remote and seedy. Places like this wouldn't attract the sort of attention they were trying to avoid now.

Xander got off the bike first, quickly. "Oh, great," he said sarcastically. "The bistro from hell."

Spike shot a glare at him. "It's food, isn't it?" He glanced to Faith, who was managing her motorcycle pretty well for somebody who'd claimed Xander on her back would drive her off the road. "Come on, we're eating," he said shortly.

They moved inside quickly. Faith glared around, wondering how Spike had managed to stow his weapons without her noticing. He still had the bag, though. Apparently that never left his side.

She glanced down at the bag as they picked a booth. "You sleep with that?" she asked.

Xander followed her gaze, and frowned. He could only think of one reason to always carry a bag of weapons, and it wasn't a good one.

Spike glowered at them both. "Order, eat, leave," he snapped. He glanced to the waitress who wandered over to them. "Coffee, black, and a bagel." He glanced at the other two expectantly.

"Uh, Coffee, cream, two sugars, bacon and eggs," said Xander mournfully.

Faith glared at them both. "Coffee, black." She didn't add anything else. The waitress nodded and wandered off.

Faith stood, heading towards the back. Spike and Xander watched her go, Spike with a flat, appraising gaze, Xander with a clenched jaw.

Spike noticed first and quickly moved, uncomfortable with the mirroring of their actions. "That's the bint you lot called the Evil Slayer?" he asked, tapping the table's cheap linoleum top with his right hand. "She's no more evil than a bunny rabbit."

Xander laughed. "You would be the expert," he said sarcastically.

"Oh, come on. How many did she kill?" asked Spike, pressing the point.

"One," said Xander darkly.

"One man," said Spike, laughing. "One bloody nitwit, and you lot go off on her! I can imagine the self righteous smugness on your faces as you drove her away for one mistake!"

Xander glared at Spike. "Yeah, project much?" he asked darkly.

"Come on, I bet you were the first in line to tell her how evil she was," smirked Spike.

Xander shook his head, looking away. "Yeah, I sure did," he muttered. There was a catch in his voice, a reservation. Spike pounced on it.

"Come on, wanker, what'd you do?" he taunted. "Run out and get a gun? Threaten to kill her?"

"I went to her hotel room and tried to tell her that it was okay, and that it didn't matter," muttered Xander. "I tried to… I thought we had a connection, see, just because we'd slept together. I tried to save her. And I failed." His eyes were blank, and he didn't look back at Spike as he said it.

What he wasn't saying dawned on Spike instantly, from his previous conversations with Faith. She'd tried to kill him for his trouble.

Which had no doubt set off every protective instinct the other Scooby's possessed.

"But she didn't kill you, obviously," he pointed out tersely. "Couldn't have been trying that hard." He still wanted to find a reason that Faith was right and Xander was wrong.

"Angel snuck up on her, knocked her out," said Xander. He barked a laugh. "Saved my life!" he added ironically.

Spike chuckled, appreciating that irony. "Saved by the poofter…I know that feeling! Did you know he rescued me from a crazy Slayer who'd cut my hands off?" He held up his arms, gesturing towards the thin white scars around his forearms. "Then he patched them up proper."

"Ew," said Xander, leaning in and examining the scars. "Crazy Slayer? Well, you had all that experience with Drusilla…should've been a cake walk."

Spike pulled his arms back. "You'd think," he groused. "All the bint could think about was her borrowed memories of me killing two Slayers."

Xander's mouth dropped open. "Ooohhhh," he said knowingly, drawing the word out as long as possible. "So, in a way, it was just what you deserved, wasn't it?"

Spike smirked. "That it was," he said lightly, ignoring the urge to slap Xander. "One innocent, abused thing taking it out on another."

"How are you an abused innocent thing by any definition?" asked Xander, outraged.

Spike glowered at him. "Every predator was a prey at some point," he growled, his eyes narrowing in anger. "And at some point, far, far, in the past, before I was a vampire, I was just another kid with a soul, just waiting to be victimized by Angelus and Darla."

"And Drusilla," added Xander.

Spike shrugged. "Whatever."

"But we know all about the fact you were name William the Bloody before you got your soul!" said Xander quickly.

Spike smirked. "Okay, I'll cop to that one," he admitted. "I'm bad to the bone. But nobody's born bad." He turned his gaze after the departed Slayer again. "What drove her bad?"

Xander snorted. "Yeah, ask what drove her bad," he said, just a little bitterly. "What kind of poor parenting and abuse led to that? I wonder if her parents drank…if they beat her." There was a dark irony in his words that Spike understood too well. He'd met Xander's parents, tied up in the boy's basement.

He shook his head. "Well, at least you didn't kill a man over it," he pointed out.

"No, I just screwed up the one good thing that ever happened to me, which ended with An dead, by the by," said Xander, a tight grin that wasn't happy at all stretching across his face. "I might as well have killed her."

Spike didn't argue with that. If the whelp wanted to have a guilt trip, he'd be more than happy to let him. In his opinion, none of the Scoobies had ever suffered nearly enough.

Of course, he still hated them all, so maybe his opinion wasn't completely unbiased.

Faith returned, sitting next to Spike. She chose it because she definitely did not want to sit next to Xander. Unfortunately, now they were more or less seated opposite, and she had to go to great lengths to avoid eye contact.

Spike leaned forward. "This might be our last chance to stop today, whelp," he said. "You might want to hit the little boy's room."

Xander glanced from Faith to Spike, shrugged, and moved away.

Spike poked Faith in the arm as he walked away. "I cannot believe you lot," he said, his tone aggrieved. "We're on the run from dangerous demon assassins, who, by the way, come in a lot more dangerous varieties than the buggers we hacked up today, and you're all obsessing over your little crush."

Faith tried to escape him, but he grabbed her arm, holding her. "Look, I know your little kiss-and-kill history pretty well by now, having heard both your sides. Buffy and I did far worse things to each other, and managed to wrinkle it out into at least a friendship. She actually sent the great poof to hell once, and he still loves her! Just work it out. I don't want to die because you were too busy trying to convince yourself there's no such thing as 'twue wuv.'"

Faith sneered at him. "Quit butting your big nose where it isn't wanted," she warned him.

"Fine!" snapped Spike. "The demons aren't after you two. I'll just split, then, head for Africa."

"Why Africa?" asked Faith.

"Just a little investigation into long-distance soul-giving," he said sourly. "Of course, with her visions, she's gonna be one step ahead of me, so it's gonna be hard, but I can manage alone."

Faith winced. She'd hate to ever think of this annoying ex-vampire as a friend, but the truth was that he had managed to weasel his way into her life and her confidences in a very short time. She couldn't stand him, but she also couldn't just stand by and send him off to a near-certain death alone.

She wondered briefly if this was some sort of maternal thing.

"Fine!" she snapped. "I'll take some time tonight, iron things out. Talk to him. But it'll just make things worse."

She stood up and moved away, heading back for the motorcycles. She was a vision of beauty, a curvaceous Slayer without any of the inhibitions that had driven Spike mad in the last Slayer. In theory, she was perfect for him.

If she didn't annoy him so much he wanted to tear her spine out.

"Bugger," he muttered, glancing at Xander, who was returning. The food arrived at the same time, and they both dug in, not bothering to speak. They really had nothing to say to each other.

Xander finished first, pushing his plate away angrily. "Don't think I don't understand what you're doing," he snarled.

"What's that?" asked Spike, amused.

"Force me to patch things up with Faith, by making me realize she's not that bad," said Xander. "She's not! I accept that! But do you think just because I forgive her for all she's done I can stop seeing her choking me whenever her hands come near my neck? You think just because I know how hard she's worked to be different I can forget how scary she can be? I can't. I'm not that good."

Spike glared at the boy. "Can you blame me? The tension between you two is thick enough to cut with a knife!"

"Some forced confrontation isn't going to fix it!" hissed Xander. "Isn't that shiny soul supposed to make you smarter or gooder or something?"

Spike stalked out, not bothering to finish, leaving Xander to pay.

-

Angel had spent the day talking to Buffy, and was exhausted. If not physically, then mentally. She'd taken him through the ringer on everything, from his knowledge of Spike's being alive to his willingness to shed human blood to defeat the Circle of the Black Thorn.

He was a little annoyed. What gave her the right to judge him?

Okay, that was a defensive response, one cultivated by the quick-to-claim-the-right-to-judge Spike. Maybe being the woman he loved did give her that right. But it still stung a little bit.

He'd been to places that nobody but Spike could understand (Spike, who hadn't hesitated to torture a man for information when it had been for a good cause). He'd done things nobody but Spike could understand.

He realized he was grinding his teeth, and forced himself to stop. Thinking about Spike always ticked him off so badly that he needed a little time just to readjust and start trying to think about something less … Spike.

Buffy had left to go get some food, and Angel thought that Dana was reading. Or pretending to. She was glancing at him curiously, watching him.

"What is it?" he asked crankily.

"You're a vampire, in love with a Slayer?" she asked, frowning. "That seems…perverse."

"It is," said Angel, sighing heavily. "Not the only one, either. Spike fell in love with her too."

Dana stared at him. "Spike? Handless Spike? Loved her?"

"Yeah," said Angel. "Of course, I think we've both managed to move on from that." His voice sent the unmistakable message that no matter what he thought, they hadn't.

Dana was silent, trying to wrap her mind around the triangle. "So you're both rejecting her?" she asked.

"It's not that simple," said Angel. "She has a boyfriend. The Immortal, from Rome. He's…well, he's the only man on this planet I hate worse than Spike. But he's…good to her, I guess." His voice was beyond skeptical, and into the land of wildest imaginations.

"Uh-huh," said Dana. Her knowledge of human beings and their ways was limited enough. She had no idea what vampires and Slayers considered normal relationships. Even so, she was pretty sure that this wasn't it.

"Yeah, it's all gone to—AARGGH!" Angel screamed, cutting himself off and flinging himself against the bars, clutching his head. He banged his forehead against the bars again and again, howling.

Dana could hear an alarm going off quietly, and Slayers were rushing in, pointing crossbows at Angel, who finally stopped, gasping for air as if he actually needed it, clinging to the bars and sagging low.

When his head snapped up his eyes were glowing a dull, dirty yellow, and his forehead was ridged, the demon underneath the surface coming out. Dana stared, fascinated.

"Buffy," he groaned, his voice raspy.

Giles rushed up, a notebook still dangling from one hand, unnoticed. "What happened?" he asked. "I heard the alarm," he added, as nobody moved to answer him.

Angel shook his head, his demon face slipping away only from a supreme effort. "Giles… there's, um, there's something I need to do," he said.

Giles was frowning, his distrust obvious. "Does this have something to do with Buffy's visit earlier?" he asked, his voice suspicious and ominous.

"Not one thing," replied Angel. "I just…"

He couldn't think of words to describe what he knew now, or how he knew it. How could he describe the way Doyle's visions had come to him, how Doyle had set him on the path towards goodness?

How could he explain the way a single kiss had transferred those prophetic powers to Cordelia, starting her on the murky road of pain and suffering that led to her death?

How could he explain the single kiss she'd given him when she was dying, the single kiss that had given him the vision of the Circle of the Black Thorn? A vision that had set him on his own path, one that led to the eventual destruction of Wolfram and Hart.

By Spike, added the obnoxious Cockney voice in the back of his head.

"Xander, Spike and Faith are in danger," said Angel. "I… I've had visions, Giles. I can see the future, glimpses…flashes…" He trailed off, staring at the skeptical face of the older man he had once tortured.

The man Spike had eventually saved from death.

Angel started again. "You don't have to let me go, you can just call Xander. You know his number! Call him, and warn him…you can send more Slayers to help him out. They've found him again!"

"Who?" asked Giles coldly.

"Wolfram and Hart!" yelled Angel. "They've found him, and since he destroyed the Senior Partners they'll be after blood, Rupert! They're heading right into a trap, and they don't even know it!"


	21. Of Seers and Champions

Disclaimer: I don't own a thing.

Summary: Post AtS and BtVS, Faith and Xander are approached by a secret government agency. Surprises all around.

Rating: PG-13

Chapter 21: Of Seers and Champions

Angel sat quietly, watching Buffy and Giles confer. He could hear them perfectly, with his enhanced hearing, and they were driving him crazy. It was like listening to two eels wind themselves in knots and double-knots and triple-knots and then complain that they were too close together.

"It could be a double double double bluff," said Giles uncertainly. "Making us want to call, but making us think if we do they'll be hurt, which keeps us from calling, which in turn makes us want to call, getting them hurt."

Angel winced.

"Oh, come on!" said Buffy. "We're talking about Spike and Faith! We'll tell them that there's an army after them, they'll go fight it! And probably die! What we do is we tell them that we have a mission for them, and send them somewhere else. That'll solve all our problems!"

Angel shook his head. He hadn't mentioned the one, biggest, blinding image he had seen, Drusilla standing over a prone Spike, blood all over her face, laughing. If Drusilla was the danger, then she could probably outthink them.

Or at least outmaneuver them, using her visions. Whatever conclusion they came to, she would know, and she would counter it. There was no way to avoid it.

"That may be what the forces of darkness are counting on!" said Giles.

Angel coughed. "The forces of darkness?" he mouthed. He didn't think he'd ever been as melodramatic as that about the whole thing… and he'd been pretty melodramatic.

Dana, sitting on her bed, scowled at him. "They're not going to do it, you know," she said.

"And even if they did, it's not enough," agreed Angel. "I need… I need to be with…" The words caught in his mouth. He needed to be by Spike's side, not here. And admitting that he needed to be near the one man he hated so badly… Well, it did more than hurt. It really caused him to question his own sanity.

"Buffy!" said Angel sharply. She looked at him, surprised. "Your friends are in danger. Serious danger. I've got to go to them. I've got to find them." He put some serious emphasis on the last sentence. They had to understand what he was telling them, had to understand how important this was.

Giles stared. "You said you didn't," he noted, still suspicious. Angel almost groaned, but held it back. Giles had more than ample reason to be suspicious of the vampire; hadn't Angelus tortured him?

And Spike had saved him.

Angel scowled. "A Champion needs his Seer," he said harshly.

His final, ironic cut at Spike had been giving him the Shanshu, abandoning his own redemption in favor of the younger vampire, who had earned it just as fiercely, with no real thought for his own redemption. He'd done it … because it was what he wanted to do. What he wanted to be.

But the Powers That Be weren't done with Angel. Cordelia's kiss hadn't been an addendum to their plan… it had been part of their plan to keep jerking him around all along.

Now he was their pawn again, but he'd exchanged his own role for Cordelia's. And he was once more trapped in their game.

This time, with no hope for redemption. This time, with no eventual salvation. This time, with no end to the battle. Ever.

This was hell, he realized vaguely. Eternal servitude, until death. An eternity of fighting the impossible fight. And, worse, at least until Spike died, being forced to fight that battle beside Spike. Being forced to be Spike's sidekick.

This was worse than the torture the Senior Partners had inflicted on his soul, a million times worse. This was real torture. Why had the Senior Partners even tried? They could never match the torment the Powers That Be had planned for him.

Dana grinned. "They're not going to let you out," she repeated. "They think broken things belong behind bars."

"You did cut Spike's arms off," pointed out Angel reasonably. "I think maybe behind bars is safer for you." He ignored the second half of that statement, refusing to think of himself as some broken thing. Maybe had been, but he knew that the only solution was action, was doing something.

Dana shrugged. "Maybe I'll make it up to him," she said obliquely.

"How? Cutting off his legs?" asked Angel, amused.

Buffy and Giles had gone back to debating, Angel's moment of introspection having allowed them to resume ignoring him. That amused him and irritated him in ways he didn't like to think about.

Dana shrugged guilelessly. "I was confused," she said. "Past, present, my past, his past…it was all a blur."

"And you're better now," said Angel dryly, clearly not believing it.

She shrugged. "I'm not confused," she said.

Angel sighed. "Yes, you are," he said. "You may have gotten the past and present apart, in your head, but you still haven't really gotten past your problems. Trust me on this; I know."

Dana frowned. "That sounds crazier than me!" she protested.

Angel sighed. "All right, let me illustrate. Spike?"

"Evil!" chirped Dana.

"Spike with a soul?" he prompted.

"Evil!" said Dana firmly. "You can't fool me with the soul thing—the guy who got me had one."

"Spike, with a soul, saving the world?"

"Evil!" Dana sing-songed, clearly happy with this game.

"Me?"

"Possibly evil." Her eyes showed some doubt on the matter; it was clear that she really meant 'evil,' but was getting better about just saying disturbing things outright.

"And what do you do to evil people?" asked Angel.

Dana pouted. "I'm not supposed to kill them unless Giles says it's okay," she said sullenly.

Angel smiled. "All right, I guess that's progress." He glanced to Buffy. "I wasn't requesting, you know," he said, his voice louder and firm.

Giles and Buffy looked at him sharply. "What?" said Buffy, clearly not believing he meant what was so apparent in his voice."

"I wasn't requesting to be let out. I wasn't being polite, and I most certainly wasn't asking," said Angel slowly. "I managed to make the ultimate sacrifice for Spike once already. I died for him. He died for me." Angel leaned forward, grasping the bars tightly. "For my troubles, instead of eternal peace or eternal damnation, they sent me back as Spike's sidekick. Do you understand what kind of living hell that is? But I'm not going to sit here on my hands while he's in trouble. Last time he went up against these guys, he died. And he was a lot more dangerous then."

Angel threw himself against the bars. They were good bars, very solid, but whoever had installed them hadn't put them more than an inch into the concrete floor below. They smashed free, flying across the room to slam into Dana's bars with a loud clang.

Angel stepped out of the cell. "Say what you like, it's time for me to go to Spike." He shifted into a fighting stance. "And that's not a request."

* * *

The new motel room Spike had got them did not have a television, a sad state that caused Spike to laugh merrily. It had one bed, and no couches, which made Faith laugh. The floor hadn't been cleaned in weeks, and there was no air conditioning, which didn't make any of them any merrier.

Faith glowered around the tiny dump, glad there was at least carpeting. No matter how cheesy. "Dibs on the bed," she said shortly. Normally she'd make some smart comment about a threesome, but just now she had the feeling that would go over like a lead balloon.

Spike leaned out the door. "I'm gonna go scout around, see if I can't find us some more weapons," he said. "The bag's emptying pretty quick." Faith and Xander both glanced at the duffel he never parted with, eyes narrowing thoughtfully.

Faith scowled, suddenly realizing what he was saying. "I should go with you," she said.

"And leave Powerless alone?" asked Spike sardonically. "I think not." He left without a further word, leaving them alone.

Faith felt her throat constrict immediately. Last time she'd been alone with Xander she'd made an utter fool of herself, and she had no plans at all to do that again.

On the other hand, she'd told Spike she'd do something about the tension between them.

"Hey," she said listlessly, watching him go through the bags of food they'd brought. It was make-work of the lowest sort, and he was obviously trying to ignore her. "Spike wanted us to talk."

Xander stopped, taking a deep breath. "Okay," he said, still not looking at her.

She felt the familiar surge of irritation at him. What right did he have to act so self-righteous with her?

But she had tried to kill him. He did sort of have that right. Which annoyed her even more.

"I'm sorry," she said, and the words were almost physically painful. Was this why the Fonze couldn't say it? It did hurt, it burned, it cut, it bled. And the blood pouring out chilled her skin to the bone, and turned her skin a bright red.

Xander nodded. "Yeah, good," he said softly.

"I shouldn't have… before, in the kitchen, that was… screw this." She turned around, heading for the door.

"I'm sorry too," said Xander mournfully.

Faith froze.

"I've been too wrapped up in my own problems to be a proper Watcher—if I even had it in me to be one to begin with. I've done nothing but make this job harder for you. And now, with Spike here, I'm laying all this crap on you that you did nothing to deserve…well, except for grabbing me. You did deserve some crap for that." He took a deep breath, trying to fortify himself. "Any of that make sense to you?"

Faith shook her head. She really hadn't understood anything except that bit about deserving some crap for grabbing him. Was that his opinion of her? That she was so low, so dangerous, so dark, that she shouldn't even touch him?

"I tried to forgive you for trying to kill me, but it was hard," said Xander, his voice soft. "Harder to forgive you for trying to kill my two best friends… I forgave you immediately for trying to kill Angel, of course."

Faith felt herself tense up at his last sentence. That was the one she felt guiltiest about, since Angel had worked so hard to save her.

And Xander hated him.

Now that she thought about it, she really did hate most of the people Xander idolized so unfairly. And…vice versa. He hated everyone who was at all important to her. Even Spike, who she still sort of hated as well as admired, Xander hated.

And she was afraid he lumped her in the same group.

"But it was hard. Even after you proved that you were different, when you helped save the world…against the First…even then, I couldn't do it." Xander snorted. "And I was too busy trying hard not to show how much I was hating Spike to even think about you. No offense."

Faith didn't take too much offense at that. She knew that having to live in the same house as the vampire had been hard on Xander. He'd made that clear.

Had it been as hard to live in the same house with her?

"And I just….okay, I'm babbling. Shut me up," said Xander, disgust in his voice. "I just … I've made this hard on you, and I was wrong. I'm… yeah, I already said I was sorry."

The worst part was how turned on the pathetic apology left Faith. She glowered at him, muttered a few choice condemnations of his ancestors under her breath, and turned away.

Xander scowled at her. "What?" he asked.

"Nothing," she muttered. "Maybe I can catch up with Spike."

Xander's scowl deepened. "You know he was evil without a soul, right? And just as evil with it? Champion of goodness, my butt! He's still as evil as ever!"

"And he's died saving the world how many times now?" asked Faith. "As many times as Buffy, isn't it?"

Xander scowled. "Don't you dare defend him," he snarled.

It was hard for Faith not to respond. How could she not defend him? The first reason, of course, was that Xander's attack was a backhanded attack on the vampire with a soul who had saved her.

The second was that Xander's attack was a backhanded attack on her. She'd been as evil as Spike.

And the third, absurd as it was, was that the evil vampire was good now. She hated that reason worse than the first two.

So she turned away from him, scowling to herself.

Xander's cellphone rang. He sighed, opening it. "Yeah?" he snapped angrily. "Oh, hi. Yeah, she's here. Spike's gone to get weapons. Who? Went crazy? Broke out? Fought his way through the Slayers? Um, G-Man, I'm… coming for us, you say? Babbling about visions?" He closed the phone carefully. "Um, Faith, Angel's gone crazy, possibly soulless, and he's heading this way."

Faith felt her blood run cold. Just when she thought things were as bad as they could get… they always got worse. Always.

* * *

Spike examined the array of smoking products on display over the counter of the sporting goods shop. He hadn't expected them. It was a hunting store, for crying out loud!

Cigs. His mouth was practically watering from desire and need.

He was turning over a new leaf, he reminded himself. He wasn't letting him impulses rule him. He was thinking. He was working.

He could distantly hear the frenzied tapping of his lighter spastically snapping open and shut in his hand, but it seemed to be coming from far away.

The smokes were like a demon. They crept up on you, their evil so seductive you didn't realize that you were evil, that you were killing the people you cared about. You got a soul, and you still didn't realize how deeply evil you were, thinking the evil was in your past. But one day you woke up and a psychotic Slayer was there telling you how evil you still were.

That was how evil the cigarettes were.

"Can I help you, sir?" asked the store clerk nervously.

Spike stepped up to the display, taking a deep breath. He could do this. "No cigarettes!" he said firmly. "No matter what I say later, or how much I scream, no cigs! No smokes!" The employee was staring at him as if he was crazy. "Now, your entire hunting knife collection. That shotgun there, and all the shells you can fit in this bag." Spike dropped the bag on the counter.

"Er, I can't just sell you the gun. There's a waiting period…" said the clerk.

Spike pulled the sword out of the bag, whipping it around and pressing the blade against the man's throat. "Look, chuckles, I've got a roll of hundreds just for you if you cooperate, so just fall in line," he snarled.

Okay, this was mildly evil, but how else was he supposed to fight Wolfram and Hart? He watched the clerk scurry and sweat, and lowered the sword. "Look, mate, I don't want to hurt you," he said kindly. "It's a crazy, crazy world, although I'm not crazy, not anymore, and you do what you have to do to survive. Now, that bow, too, and all the arrows. Yep, good, good."

He returned the sword to the oversized duffel and lifted it easily, taking out the bundle of bills. He flipped off five hundred dollars quickly. "Hope this covers it," he said, turning and leaving quickly.

Ha! He'd left without taking any cigarettes! He beamed happily, glad he was learning some self-control. Proof he wasn't evil anymore!

The vampire was waiting outside for him, scowling. "My Spoike," she said mournfully, the scowl giving the words a macabre meaning she surely didn't intend.

He sighed. "I just can't escape you, can I, Dru?" he said, his voice a bit vicious. "Come to offer me immortality again? Screw off. I've figured out how bad that deal is."

"If you continue, you'll die," cautioned Drusilla.

"Then I'll die happy, having gained some self-respect!" snarled Spike. "What I'm doing ain't easy, but it's right! Right! Do you even understand that? Do you even understand how far I've come? Of course you don't. You're just like the others. You think I'm crazy."

She moved forward, a languorous walk that was as seductive as it was dangerous. He felt a pang of desire, watching her; she had been his first, and in a lot of ways, his best. No disrespect to Buffy, but she had always been weighed down by guilt, more than deserved, while sleeping with him.

"You're nothing, Dru," he said mournfully, cutting her off. The sword was out before she could respond.

Angelus had been the more powerful for a very long time. Angel had been the one to defeat Spike on occasion. And everybody had known that when Spike began fighting for the side of goodness he'd lost a lot of his ability to fight.

But that had been about the will to fight, not about his abilities. He'd been ashamed to fight on the side of good, and had never tried hard. Facing Doc on that tower, he had been brutally ashamed of himself, even as he fought so hard to be good enough for Buffy to love.

It had only been recently, after getting a soul, that he'd really been able to throw himself wholeheartedly into the fight with the same determination that had bagged him two Slayers in fair combat. That same determination that had taken Angel down when they'd fought against each other in the struggle for the Cup of Perpetual Torment.

Even in the day, fighting Slayers, Spike had never been as dangerous as he was now.

He attacked viciously and quickly, his sword twirling in a ballet of death.

Drusilla dodged back, her arms striking out like whirling dervishs, blocking his attacks and throwing a few of her own his way. She was, despite her madness, at least as deadly as he was. And while she was insane, she wasn't stupid; she knew exactly how dangerous that sword was in his hands.

And she knew that it was only lethal if he beheaded her.

So she kept her chin tucked and continued flailing, finally grabbing a nearby street sign and snapping it free, tired of fighting him without a weapon. Her arms were bloodied, and her dress was ruined, but now that she had a weapon she was even more dangerous.

She whirled into action, using the sign as a crude quarterstaff. She slapped at his sword with it, aiming the sharp broken end at his chest and thrusting at him time and again.

There was no banter for this fight. Not between these two. They'd loved each other, hated each other, and even cheated on each other (although Spike would argue that point ferociously; it didn't matter. In Drusilla's mind, obsession with the Slayer you were **going** to sleep with **after** she dumped you was as bad as sleeping with her now).

The fight was cold, deliberate, and vicious. How could it be otherwise?

Spike finally won, managing to disarm her. He ran her through, knocking her back to the ground, yanking the sword out quickly as she fell, screaming.

He glanced around, expecting an army of demons to come swarming down. Not seeing them he crouched over the wounded vampire, who hissed at him.

"Sorry, Dru," he said mournfully, putting a hand on her shoulder and firmly holding her down. "I don't want to kill you; I never have. But I'm not the only one in this, and I have to think about—!"

She giggled.

He froze, his blood running cold. "How many?" he asked, painfully aware that he'd taken all the weapons with him.

"Just one," she said sweetly. "Your oldest friend, come back to haunt them." She giggled. "Even now your sweet dark Slayer and your nummy treat are being torn to pieces."

Spike scoffed, standing quickly. "She's tough," he said harshly. "I don't think so. What do you mean, oldest friend?"

Drusilla smiled sweetly. "Death, dear Spoike. Death."


	22. The Head Watcher

Disclaimer: I don't own a thing.

Summary: Post AtS and BtVS, Faith and Xander are approached by a secret government agency. Surprises all around.

Rating: PG-13

A/N: A long time between updates, eh? Darn accounting professors, with their infernal reliance on copious amounts of homework to spur learning!

Chapter 22: The Head Watcher

Faith and Xander were almost out the door to go looking for Spike when the big Fyarl appeared, slamming into Xander and sending him flying. The big brown demon let out a bellow of rage, attacking Faith.

She countered his punch with a quick block, staring up at the monstrous demon with the huge horns. "Dude, seriously, a breathmint," she managed to quip as he bellowed again.

Blocking his blows seriously hurt; he was strong, stronger than anything she'd seen recently. And his scaly skin looked hard to penetrate; even if she'd had the weapons Spike had taken with him.

She thought a few choice invectives in Spike's direction. "So, you ready to dance, big guy?" she asked, punching him as hard as she could. To her surprise it lifted him up off the ground, flipping him over and skipping him across the ground.

He wasn't as heavy as he looked, she thought with exultant joy.

Then he got up, springing to his feet, and advanced again.

Okay, she reasoned. He wasn't heavy, but he was still tough. Tougher than he should have been. Not as fast as her, though.

She tried to spin and kick him away again, but he was having none of it. He caught her blow, slamming a hand into her.

This time there was no blocking, and she was lifted up off the ground, much as she'd knocked him off the ground. She could see the gravel beneath her spinning like a top, and realized with a jolt that this was going hurt quite a bit.

It was a bit like riding the roller coaster, if the roller coaster had been actively trying to kill you. Maybe it had been. Faith's childhood memories weren't too clear.

She slammed down hard, feeling bits of stone cut into her flesh in a most painful way that made her suddenly angry at the stupid demon. One demon, alone? She was the Slayer! One demon alone wasn't supposed to be able to kill her!

Of course, she was wrong. She could see that. This guy, alone, was big enough, bad enough, that he probably could do the job.

"Silver! Silver!" yelled Xander, getting to his feet. "You can kill him with silver!"

The Fyarl immediately moved after Xander, apparently understanding his words.

Faith panicked. She jumped forward desperately, tackling the demon from behind. She didn't weigh enough to take the monster down, but from his back she was able to get her arms around his throat and squeeze.

He struggled, bellowing. Apparently he didn't like having her hands anywhere near his neck; just like Xander, she thought bitterly.

The demon threw himself backwards, attempting to smash her into the ground. She jumped off at the last possible second, letting him smash himself into the ground while she rolled away unhurt.

Well, mostly unhurt. She could feel both her elbows stinging, and there was sticky liquid dribbling down her face.

Xander threw himself at the Fyarl furiously, screaming at it. He had found a two by four, and was using it as a make-shift club, battering at the Fyarl with all his strength.

The Fyarl batted him away effortlessly, and Faith felt her heart stop as she watched her Watcher hurl through the air and slam down onto the ground, jerkily, like a high-speed videotape.

Faith cursed, diving back into the fray. Once again Xander was acting with no regard at all for his own life. His suicidal tendencies were going to drive her to drinking, she decided.

Well, if she didn't already drink.

She slammed a fist into the Fyarl, trying to knock him off balance. He absorbed the blow easily and backhanded her away.

As she slammed into the ground again she heard a bellow that sounded just the Fyarl. She glanced up, surprised.

Spike charged in, wielding a shining metal stake that he slammed into the Fyarl's chest. As the huge beast collapsed backwards he collapsed to the ground, breathed hard and raggedly.

There were shallow cuts all along his face, and Faith noted more along his wrists. She dragged herself to her feet with some effort. "What was that bellow?" she asked.

"Fyarls are a bloody slowwitted lot," growled Spike. "Start yelling about honor and blood and they freeze up. Didn't fancy letting him get another shot in. You all right, Slayer?"

Faith stretched, feeling unpleasant pops under her skin. "Five by five," she growled.

Spike sighed, rolling his head along his shoulders. "Drusilla's out there," he said, nodding his head away.

Faith glared at him. "And she's still alive because…?"

Spike shrugged. "She was never alive, luv," he corrected her. But as she stared at him she could see something in posture, something not right, that told her he was obfuscating, avoiding her question. Trying to dodge it.

"What is it?" she demanded. "Did you let her go?"

He glanced at her coldly. "Just drop it."

Now Xander had picked himself up, and he was staring at Spike. "You mean you had a chance to end this and you let her go?" he blurted out. He was not only incredulous, Faith could see some rage lurking in his eyes.

Spike sighed, retrieving the silver stake from the Fyarl's body. "Oh, and I suppose you two happened to have silver weapons handy to kill the nice demon?" he asked sarcastically.

"Why do you?" asked Xander, surprised.

"Werewolves," said Spike. "Nasty buggers. They had a whole pack, back when I was hiding from them, trying to track me by scent."

"Back on track!" snapped Faith. "Drusilla! Crazy vamp!"

"I never could stake her," said Spike mournfully. "I'm not that good. I'm not Angel. Could you stake your mother?" His scowl deepened. "I couldn't. Ever. Not ag—I couldn't."

Faith caught his slip. "What, you dusted Drusilla once before?" she snarked.

"Um, he means his real mom," said Xander. "You know, the whole vampire go-back-and-kill-everyone-you-love deal? Didn't you get that memo from Angel?"

Spike scowled. "Exactly," he said, looking just a bit relieved. "Dru's only dangerous to us, really. She won't be trying to destroy the world."

"Well, besides trying to **kill us**," growled Faith, "she will be doing that vampire thing and killing innocents!"

Spike glowered at her. "Then you do it," he muttered. "She's right behind me." Faith froze, and turned to look back down the street Spike had run down.

True to form, Drusilla was walked down the street slowly. There were several demons with her, large ones, and well-armed. They were moving slowly, almost like zombies, matching her pace. She appeared to be having a giggling fit. Faith stared. "Well, why didn't you say so?" she asked, madder than ever.

Spike shrugged. "You guys never listen to me anyway," he said reasonably.

Faith glanced around. "This is going to be a bit dicey," she said.

"Well, we're going to run," said Spike reasonably, bringing out the shotgun. "Cyclops, you try to slow them down with this." He tossed it over, tossing a box of ammunition a moment later. "I'll get the bikes." He tossed a pair of knives to Faith, who caught them easily, glowering at him.

"I'm going to kill you," she warned him.

"You let psycho there live to come after us with reinforcements!" she hissed.

Spike shrugged. "You think I've given up on getting her a soul?" he asked, his voice rough. Faith blinked. "I owe her!" insisted Spike. "Owe her everything!" He glanced back at Drusilla, who was now within a hundred feet of them. "Well, okay, that's overkill," he said, noting the demon with the chainsaw.

Xander started firing. "Get the bikes!" he screamed, anger in his voice. Spike glanced at him, surprised. "You get her killed and I'll kill you, Spike, I don't care if you're a human!" snarled Xander, pumping the action and firing again.

He was too far away for his shots to have any real effect, but Faith didn't say anything, running back for the bike, stowing the knives in her belt. As she started it she glanced at Spike, who was unloading a sword from his bag, stowing it behind him as he did so.

"I'll distract them, try to grab Dru," snarled Spike. "You do what you have to!"

Grab Xander, he meant. She gritted her teeth and gunned it, swinging the bike back around at him.

She should have tried to stop Spike, she knew. It was a crazy idea, trying to grab the crazy ex. But that was what he did, crazy things, and she didn't really care.

She slowed down as she came alongside Xander. "On!" she snapped.

He hesitated, firing again. Now the demons were so close that he hit one, knocking it down. He jumped on behind Faith, and she gunned it.

He was hanging on around her stomach with one arm, one warm arm with the fingers clamped to her ribs and squeezing her. And it hit her on so many different levels that she curled her hands tight around the handlebars, leaning forward.

It was really the first time he'd touched her since the night she'd tried to kill him. Oh, she'd touched him when she grabbed him in the kitchen, and they'd touched during fights, but this was the first time she'd felt his hands on her again.

It was comforting, in a way. It was nice, if not entirely familiar.

And it was turning her on.

She tucked her chin in. How warped was that, anyway? The chunky carpenter with one eye turned her on.

She heard a roaring noise and half-turned, noting that Spike was even more bloodied, but hadn't managed to snag the loony vampire. She heard more noises and looked back.

She could see cars coming after them, and she scowled, accelerating. "Can you shoot their tires out?" she yelled at Xander.

"When they get closer!" he yelled in her ear. He shifted position, his hand moving around.

It was pretty unfair, she thought, that he wasn't enough of a jerk to at least cop a feel. She shifted, hoping to cause him to lose his balance enough to grab something he shouldn't have.

But he let go, swinging around for a two handed grip on his gun and firing. The recoil knocked him into her, and the bike swayed across the road. Faith was glad at this point they were alone on the road.

Spike pulled up beside them. "Nit!" he roared, reaching out with one hand and snatching the gun from Xander. He pumped it with a smooth move of his single hand, braking hard.

Faith looked back, watching. As the cars caught up Spike fired at point black range, blowing out their tires. Then he accelerated away, pumping again and firing. Faith switched her eyes forward, listening to the reverberating explosions behind them.

Finally they stopped.

"He get them all?" she asked Xander. She had to repeat it before he heard her.

"Yes!" he yelled, his voice too loud in her ear, nearly deafening her.

He was holding himself on with his knees now, his arms by his sides, holding the bike. His knees pressed into her thighs, and she was right back where she started.

Maybe if she'd had an opportunity to get laid in the past month it wouldn't be this bad, she reflected.

Spike took the lead, heading out at a break-neck speed. "We should have helmets!" yelled Xander. Faith shrugged.

Apparently Xander wasn't the only one with a death wish.

* * *

Dawn carefully sat down opposite Buffy, noting the pout. "Feeling left out?" she said sympathetically.

"No! Yes! I just… when did… Angel ran away from **me** to go save **Spike!** And I'm starting to think he's telling the truth when he says that."

Dawn sighed. "That was the consensus here in brains-ville while you were spacing. You want to talk about it?"

Buffy shook her head. "The days when I came first for Angel ended a long time ago. The days when I came first for Spike apparently also did. But, you know… what's the plan?"

"Smooth segue," said Dawn, amused. "Well, sis, here it is; we're gonna call Xander, and tell him to hoof it as fast as he can to the safe house in Seattle. It's the one closest to him. When he gets there, we're gonna have Slayers waiting for him. Including you, if you like. Angel made it sound like a war, and there's only one organization on this planet more ready for war than us; and it's cool, I checked with _l'Eterno_, and he's still doing his mysterious thing, not at all throwing down with us. Which is good, because we'd totally kick his butt."

Buffy blinked. "Somewhere, in there, there was sense," she said, marveling. Dawn giggled.

"Cool, huh? Anyway, we're pretty sure Angel has some kind of vision sense-y thing going on, so he can find them. Possibly faster than we can. We figure it's an hour to sun-up where they are; we'll give them the day, then call them."

"Why give them the day?" asked Buffy.

Dawn shook her head. "We don't want them to get to Seattle before the army of Slayers, Buffy," she said reprovingly. "Andy's putting together his strike team; are you on board?"

Buffy stared at Dawn. "And, you?" she asked quietly.

Dawn grinned. "Well, we know that there's still an Italian Wolfram and Hart office. I'm putting together my own strike team, and maybe _l'Eterno_ will help me out on this… he was ambivalent. But my job is to start cutting these Wolfram and Hart rats off at their knees, clear things up for Xander and Faith."

"When did you become the one in charge?" asked Buffy softly.

Dawn shrugged. "Ask Giles," she said obliquely. "And maybe Andy."

"And when did Andrew become Andy?" complained Buffy.

"When I slept with him?" suggested Dawn. "Gotta go get ready to fight! Bye!"

Buffy sat there, her eyes wide. "I'm not an unobservant person!" she complained as Giles entered the room. "Really, I'm not!"

Giles sighed, sitting down. "You just had a meeting with Head Watcher Dawn, I take it?" he asked. "She sneaks up on you. She acts like a little girl, but as soon as bad things start happening, she takes charge, makes sense, gives orders. At first we just took them as suggestions, but not so much anymore. Especially after Andrew, of all people, suggested that we elect a Head Watcher. I had assumed it would be my role; but they didn't think so."

"Wait, she was elected?" asked Buffy, horrified.

"No, of course not," sniffed Giles. "I merely had a quiet conversation with Dawn, and I appointed her Head Watcher." His tone clearly said American ideas like elections would never be part of _his_ Watchers' Council.

"Where did this come from?" asked Buffy.

Giles smiled. "Isn't it obvious, Buffy? It came from you, of course. You taught her everything she knows. How to lead; and how to make hard decisions. When she kicked you out that night… did you ever think about it? Nobody else was going to kick you out, except maybe Kennedy. Nobody else would think of it. But Dawn did it. Why?"

Buffy stared at him, slowly starting to comprehend what he was saying. A small smile tugged at her lips. "Because she knew I needed to get away from everyone else, and think about things," said Buffy. "She knew… and things worked out just as she thought they would, didn't they?"

"You'd strayed," said Giles. "You needed to learn, and she taught you. She's done the same for me on occasion. I have been known to curse her name. When we do finally formalize things… she will be the Head Watcher."

"And not you," repeated Buffy, still shocked.

"I'm a field agent," said Giles. "A Watcher. Now, more than ever."

Buffy shook her head. "Wow. I mean… wow. One morning you wake up and realize that not only were you never really in charge, your kid sister now bosses everyone around."

"Oh, she rarely bosses," said Giles. "She doesn't have to. She just says, and it's done. And she rarely says; she prefers for us to solve our own problems."

Buffy laughed. Then she froze, her face twisting. "Wait, she slept with Andrew?"

Giles flushed. "Er, that was right after Sunnydale, during your … um, are you going with Andrew?"

Buffy made a face. "After finding out he slept with my sister? Ew! No! Is she still here?"

"For another half hour," said Giles. "I think she's packing up."

Buffy sighed, heading up the stairs. "Goodbye, Giles," she said. "Take care!"

Giles let out a sigh when she left. "Oh, Andrew?"

The Watcher-in-training slipped into the room, a guilty look on his face. "I didn't really mean to eavesdrop," he said.

"I know," said Giles. "You slept with Dawn?"

Andrew shrugged. "It was, um. I have never treated her with anything but respect, and we parted on very good terms."

"I've no doubt of that," muttered Giles. "I'm sure you'd have been missing body parts otherwise. You know I just lied to Buffy, don't you? That often comes back to bite me in the arse."

Andrew nodded. "Well, Dawn didn't want to tell anybody… you know how freaky she is about privacy. And, um… well, I went along because I did not want to wake up one morning without my lungs and kidneys."

"Lungs and kidneys?" asked Giles, amused.

Andrew shrugged. "Buffy's very straightforward. She's a lungs person. You? You're sneaky. It would be my kidneys."

Giles sighed. "Your kidneys are safe…at least until after I talk to Dawn."

Andrew smiled. "And thanks for saying I helped Dawn!" he said proudly. "I mean, I wasn't that much help, but it was very nice of you to say so."

Giles shrugged. "You weren't ever any help, it was very nice of me, and you need to get to Seattle."

Andrew took off.

* * *

Buffy found Dawn braiding her hair. "Wow, braids," she said awkwardly, stepping into the room.

"Yeah, brings out the kid in me," said Dawn impishly. "Actually, I just needed something easy to do so I can get on the plane in five. We okay?"

"With the SuperDawn deal? Better than okay. Fine! Um, you slept with Andrew?"

Dawn grinned. "Well, I figured if I was dropping bombs, I ought to just put it all out there."

"I feel like you grew up and I wasn't even watching!" said Buffy mournfully.

"Oh, you were watching," said Dawn. "You were there the whole time, in Italy. But I had all that free time… and I've always wanted to rule the world."

They shared a grin. Buffy shook her head. "I want to come back to Italy with you," she said.

"I thought you'd run off after the gorgeous vampire who loves you," said Dawn, confused.

Buffy shook her head. "I'm taking a page from their book, for once," she said. "Forget pining. I'm gonna go do something right, save the world. We can deal with me later."

Dawn grinned. "And here I thought I'd have to kick you out of the house again! I'm so proud!" she said. Buffy picked up a pillow and threw it at her.


	23. Trust

Disclaimer: I don't own a thing.

Summary: Post AtS and BtVS, Faith and Xander are approached by a secret government agency. Surprises all around.

Rating: PG-13

A/N: A long time between updates, eh? Darn accounting professors, with their infernal reliance on copious amounts of homework to spur learning!

Chapter 23: Trust

Xander listened to the murmurings in the cell phone, frowning. The frown wasn't because Dawn's plan sounded crazy to him, it was because his leg was pressed against Faith's in the tight, cramped space of the booth they were sitting in, and it was distracting him.

"Seattle," he muttered.

"No!" snarled Spike. "This is just a sidetrack, a little event, along the way to getting Dru a soul! We're not getting more Slayers who'll just try to kill her!"

Faith leaned across the table. "Screw you!" she snapped. "And screw your queen of the night!"

Spike sighed. "Real mature, love," he muttered.

"We are not going to be bait for your little trap!" she snapped.

He sighed, flicking his lighter opened and closed, looking around the seedy joint with a long-suffering grimace. "I'm the bait, not you," he said. "You want to bail to Seattle, feel free."

"Um, Dawnie? He's arguing," said Xander. "Yeah, with the snarkiness. No, he wants us to go on without him. He wants to lure the demonic army to Africa so he can fight for Drusilla's soul. No, he really is that much of an idiot. Yeah, sure." Xander offered the phone to Spike.

He stared at it incredulously. "No way!" he said. "I take that phone, she talks me out of it, and we all kill Dru! I don't bloody think so!"

Xander giggled, bringing the phone back to his ear. "Did you hear him Dawnie? Hm? Yeah, well, I say take it as a compliment. No, really, Spike, talk to her." He tossed the phone at Spike.

"Spike?" said Dawn hopefully.

"I wish I could still smoke," muttered Spike, holding the phone to his ear. "In case you missed the memo, luv, I'm on a mission here. A holy mission. A sacred mission."

"What if we arm the Slayers with cattle prods?" asked Dawn. "Come on, Spike, you're facing an army!"

"They'll be there before you, you know," said Spike slyly. "Drusilla's visions arm them. They know where you are, what you're doing, what you're planning, and they can use it against you."

"Bugger!" snapped Dawn. "Buffy, can you call Andrew on your cell phone? Thanks. Yeah, I don't want to lose Spike, and I need to—Spike, listen to me. This isn't helping at all."

Spike sighed. "We drove all night," he said shortly. "We're going to sleep during the day. That should at least slow them down. And you're doing something preemptive, aren't you? Which they'll know about, by the way. Go in with extra strength."

"We're bringing Buffy's boyfriend with us," said Dawn.

"Oh," said Spike. "Well. Good. Maybe the buggering ponce will finally get his head cut off, or maybe he'll get thrown in jail for tax invasion." His tone was tenser than she'd remembered, and she laughed.

"You know, I'll never figure out how Buffy managed to get three guys, more or less in a row, who ALL had issues with each other."

"Luck," said Spike shortly.

"Oh, this was the best thing that ever happened to her?" asked Dawn. "I suppose you would see it that way…"

"I didn't say it was good luck," he corrected. "Look, I appreciate this, but I'm the Champion of goodness. There are certain things that I have to do, and not even an army of Slayers can take that duty from my shoulders."

"Now you do sound crazy," she said, her voice playful and pouting at the same time.

"Look, it's nice of you, but I'm not part of your organization, and I never will be," shot Spike. "I've never been one of your little group."

"What about Angel?" asked Dawn.

"Well, he was, wasn't he? And now he's there with you. Terrific. Ask him to join you; I'm sure he will, now that his destiny's belly-up."

"Didn't Xander tell you?" asked Dawn.

"Tell me what?" asked Spike, his voice suddenly very low.

"Angel escaped and went looking for you," said Dawn.

"Bugger!" spat Spike, staring at Xander. "No, I'm afraid we were so busy not dying he neglected to mention that. Where's Angel headed?"

"He didn't say," said Dawn tensely. "Spike, why does that bother you so much? You're the one who's human now, and vulnerable."

"It was never about me, Dawnie," said Spike, a hint of sadness in his voice. "They never cared about me. I was just Angel's Childe, his sidekick. They're using me as bait, again, to draw out the real Champion. For the love of Buffy, he's so blind," sighed Spike.

"For the love of Buffy?" giggled Dawn.

Spike shrugged. "Seemed appropriate," he said banally. "All right, pet, where are we at?"

"You won't listen to reason and I won't be put off that easily," said Dawn. "Andrew, you're walking into a trap."

"What?" said Spike, irritated.

"Buffy's phone," said Dawn, unapologetically. "Spike, wouldn't an army of Slayers help you with your mission?"

"Yeah, only you don't trust me and I don't bloody trust you, pigeon. Didn't you get this memo?"

Dawn was silent. "Spike, I can send Willow to you, and she can stuff a soul in with no clauses. She's a powerful witch."

Spike growled, something that wasn't quite as effective without the powerful demon within him to back that threat up. "Dawn, you want me to trust you? Answer one question, with no lies, no evasions."

Dawn took a deep breath. "Oh, God! It always comes back to stupid sophomoric trust games with you, doesn't it?"

"Simple question, love," said Spike softly.

Faith was glaring at him, a question forming in her eyes. She was fairly sure she knew what he would ask, and that it would be centered on Buffy.

"Shoot," sighed Dawn.

"Who're you saving, right now?" asked Spike.

Dawn was silent for a second. Faith frowned, surprised by the question.

"You never did pull your punches, you freaking monster," said Dawn, her voice flat. "I'm saving Xander. From you. And you know it."

"Yes, I do," said Spike. "Right nice of you to admit it. Come on, Dawn. I said it already. You never trusted me, and you don't now." He handed the phone back to Xander.

"What did she say?" asked Xander, confused.

"She said she's saving you from Spike," said Faith, taking the cell phone. "Yeah, we'll stick with his sorry butt, kid. Yeah, even to Africa. You will? Good."

"We're going to Seattle," muttered Spike, leaning back.

Faith glared at him. "NOW he says we're going to Seattle," she growled. "You think? Yeah, sure. Bye." She closed the phone and handed it Xander. "What was that all about?" she spat.

Spike examined his fingernails uneasily. "She's the most grown up of all of you," he said obliquely. "I didn't know that. I certainly didn't expect her to tell me the truth when I asked who she was saving. I almost didn't expect her to know it. No pretty lies for that one, is there? She was honest. I said I'd trust her if she answered the question, so I will. Trust means going ahead, even if I'm bloody sure we're going to get burned in Seattle."

"Crap," muttered Xander.

"What?" said Faith.

"She forgave him," said Xander, disgusted. "It's happening again, isn't it? I'm the little guy, the one who doesn't forgive? I'm the wrong one. I'm the bad one. Why? Because everybody else can forgive a rapist!" He spat the last word.

Spike continued examining his fingernails. "I always agreed with you," he said finally.

Xander stared at him in surprise. "What?"

"Oh, not when I was evil," said Spike. "But when I got the soul… I saw it. You were right. Every single bloody time… even though you didn't say it after I came back. Well, not after that first time… you sucked it up, for Buffy. But I knew. I remembered. And when I woke in LA and you all thought I was dead… well, I thought maybe it was better that way."

* * *

Andrew waited patiently, and finally the cell phone rang again. "Hello," he said, modulating his tone. It might not be…

"Hi, Andy," said Dawn.

"Hi," he said, relief flooding him. "Um, how are things?"

"Like I said, ambush. And you may get new orders after you land. Things are… it's Spike, you know?"

"Ah, I do know," said Andrew. "And how are you holding up?"

"I think… I think maybe I trust him a little," said Dawn. "And that surprises me. Stay on your toes, huh?"

He chuckled. "I'm with twenty Slayers. What could possibly stop us?"

"Right. I… um, Buffy's right next to me."

"You told her about us before, didn't you?" asked Andrew.

"Well, I… how did you know that? Never mind, I don't want to know. God! News travels fast. I didn't tell her… I just told her… I'll explain it later. I love you. Bye."

"I love you. Bye," said Andrew. There was a beep.

Andrew checked his cell phone, making sure it was disconnected, then looked back at the girls. Inside the tight, cramped space of the jet, they were all close to him, close enough that he could lower his voice into a quavering whisper, a dramatic narration of their peril. He almost squealed with pleasure.

"Our mission, ladies, has changed! Changed drastically! While we were preparing our rescue mission, forces of darkness were marshaling, intent on destroying us! We may be walking into an ambush, an ambush of evil!"

One of the Slayers raised her hand. He nodded to her, glad that there was a modicum of respect.

"Who was on the phone?" she asked suspiciously.

"Uh, why?" he asked, nervous.

"You said, I love you," she replied. "Was that mister Giles? Because if it was, Mandy owes me a twenty."

He blushed beet red. "No!" he said.

"Xander?" prompted another girl.

"Ah! No! I'm not telling!" he said, turning around.

He missed the high fives and snorts of laughter behind him.

* * *

Buffy looked at Dawn carefully. "Love you?" she asked quietly.

Dawn shrugged. "I don't like people knowing what I'm doing in my personal life," she said. "I mean, sure, it starts with you and Willow, and next it's fifty giggling Slayers who have bets on him being gay."

Buffy nodded sagely, and then smiled. "I don't think I can adjust to this. We're talking about Andrew!"

Dawn shook her head. "Did you know he dated women in Italy for a while, Buffy?"

Buffy stared. "He did?"

"He was pretty popular, too… know why? Because he acts very stereotypically gay. He cares about your feelings, he cares what you wear, and he idolizes the men in his life. Very stereotypical. And they liked that."

"But how did the two of you…?" Buffy couldn't think of a way to phrase it, and Dawn sighed.

"Well, my Italian is good, okay? And Andrew could speak it, but not that well. So one of his dates is trying to ask him a question, and he comes to me to translate it. And she wanted… well, it was a very intimate question. And I blushed, and he blushed, and it was awkward, and so we couldn't even look each other in the eye. And you know how tension like that is… it only gets worse. And, of course, to make matters worse, that was when that demon came around…you remember? The nasty green one? Anyway, it was making trouble, so we had to work together, and one thing led to another…"

Buffy smirked. "And you got a happy ending," she finished triumphantly.

Dawn shrugged. "Yeah, a happy ending that involved an awkward morning after, a guy that secretly crushes on you, a long-distance relationship that's further strained by the fact that he is scared to death I'm gonna leave him at any time, and even more by the fact that I might, if it was better for the Slayers."

Buffy stared at her, horrified. "What?" she said, her voice just a little strained.

Dawn shook her head. "Head Watcher, Junior Watcher? It's a problem, Buffy, and one of the reasons I told nobody. The first time somebody says Andy's incompetent and we only keep him here because he's my lover, the relationship is over. Gone. Finished. And he knows it, and I know it, and it hurts. So we don't tell anybody…except you. Finally you."

"I was the first one you told." Buffy took a moment to think about that. "I told Giles," she said in a small voice.

Dawn sighed. "That's okay. He can keep a secret. But, Buffy? Not Xander. Or Willow. They suck at secrets. Or Spike. But maybe Angel, if you must tell somebody else. He can keep secrets."

Buffy stared. "Wow," she said. "Are you sure? Spike could always keep a secret. Nobody knew about me and him… except Tara, and I told her."

Dawn considered this. "Yeah, but he still totally told me all about offering to dust Drusilla," she noted.

Buffy's eyes widened. "He told you about that?"

"He was kind of proud," said Dawn. "He told me a lot, during that Summer…before you came back and it all went to hell."

Buffy frowned. "I'm sorry," she said. "I never realized that when I came back…you lost a friend. It never even occurred to me you were close to him before I came back."

Dawn shrugged. "He didn't have a soul," she noted. "He loved me, but not that much…not enough. Maybe he would have tried to turn me, if he hadn't had the chip. Maybe. That was how much he loved me, and we both knew it. And he didn't love me enough to pay attention to me when you were there. Now that he has a soul… and we've gotten past the whole 'you tried to rape my sister' thing… maybe I trust him. But I didn't before. Not even…that Summer."

* * *

Spike watched Xander head for the office, already taking out his wallet. "Ponce," he muttered. "I admit to agreeing with him and he gets all weepy. Stupid cycloptic imbecile."

"Do you ever just shut up?" asked Faith, leaning against the wall. They'd driven till the sun came up, and she was bone-weary.

"No," said Spike. "What's up with you?"

"I've been thinking of just screwing you," said Faith, leering at him.

"Ha, ha. No, seriously," replied Spike.

She shrugged. "No, really. It might help me out with this thing with Xander. But, then, there's the thought he'll find out, and that'll make things worse. So, I guess I'll find some other body to boink."

Spike snorted. "Trust me, love, it doesn't solve any of the problems it's supposed to solve."

"Oh, it does," said Faith, too tired to throw in the swagger in her hips she normally put on top of a statement like that. She managed a faint leer.

He laughed. "Yeah, preachin to the choir," he rumbled, and he managed to throw in a saucy swagger of his hips. "But it's only the drinking and the violence all over again, putting your problem off but never dealing with it."

"And you're the expert," sneered Faith.

"Too right," mumbled Spike. "I learned it all in blood and tears. Where'd you learn your lessons?"

Faith sneered. "Oh, we're having one of those 'let's show the scars' talks now?"

Spike stared at her as if she were insane. "No, we're talking about whether you and the whelp patched things up."

She scowled, leaning against the wall bonelessly. "It doesn't matter," she mumbled.

"It matters a lot," he corrected her. "I assume you tried, but it didn't go well, huh?"

"He told me what he thought of me, apologized a little bit," she mumbled.

Spike sighed. "You're one confused bint, you know," he said. "Anyway, what do you plan to do now? After Seattle you're off the hook and don't have to follow me around any more."

She shrugged. "They'll have some assignment for us," she said.

"Still sticking with the Watcher-boy, eh?" asked Spike.

"Unless they'll give me somebody new," she said dully.

Spike bared his teeth in an insane grin. "They won't. You're one of hundreds now, and you get your own Watcher? Despite being the second Slayer? You don't get it, do you?"

"Get what?" asked Faith. "That they don't trust me? I got, I got."

"Silly chit," scoffed Spike. "He's not here to protect you. You're here to protect him."

She laughed. "Funny thing is, you're mostly right. He's been… as long as he's been with me, he's been suicidal. He throws himself in front of the monsters, tries to protect me… he's had a deathwish since Sunnydale."

Spike's face instantly changed from the semi-serious, mostly-amused mock-scowl into a mask that she couldn't read. "Deathwish?" he said softly. "Don't we all."

"Shut it!" growled Faith. "It's not funny. I just want him to stop, to get back to normal."

Spike sighed. "Then you'll be waiting an awful long time, pet. He's always done that."

"What?" said Faith, surprised.

"It's his White Knight deal," growled Spike, clearly angry, although Faith couldn't fathom the reason. "I think he even took a hit for me once, during the Bad Summer."

"The … bad summer?" said Faith, arching an eyebrow.

"After Buffy died," clarified Spike. "And that was when he hated me the most. We spent that whole summer blaming each other for her death, and he was still such a buggering ponce that he took a hit for me."

Xander, who'd managed to sneak up on them, cleared his throat. "I seem to recall you taking one or two for me," he said, his voice hovering just on the edge of danger.

"Only by accident," sniffed Spike. "Got us rooms?"

"Yes," said Xander, his eyes still blazing. He was glaring at Spike. "I still blame you, you know."

"And I still blame you, though I started agreeing with you… oh, about twenty minutes before I burned to death on the Hellmouth. Happy now?" asked Spike sarcastically.

Faith stretched, convinced she'd have to tear them apart at any minute as they came to blows. The looks they were trading could have melted through the side of a battleship, and she could see Xander's hands curling into fists.

His one eye swiveled to face her. "I got us two rooms," he said flatly. "So you can have your own." He tossed her the key, which she caught numbly, turned and marched away.

"Bugger that," said Spike. "You don't mind sharing, do you, Slayer?"

"Not in the least," said Faith through clenched teeth.

Spike glanced at her, surprised. "Problem?" he asked.

"What was that all about?" she asked. "I mean, I get it. You hate him, he hates you. Get over it! I hated Buffy. Probably still do. You don't see me in her face every single time I see her!"

"It's different," muttered Spike. "He and I, we're too different, too alike. We hate too deep, love too deep, too strong." His face twisted in a scowl that was both unpleasant and unhappy. "And neither of us likes at all being like the other. We remind each other too much of ourselves."

Faith glanced at the key, then around the motel, locating their room. "Wonderful," she muttered, heading for it.

Spike shouldered his bag, following her. "You try to jump my bones, and I'll break your fingers." She gave him an odd look, surprised by the threat. He shrugged. "I may be crazy, but I'd like to make sure we stay on good terms… so I figured a fair warning was the least I could do."

She grumbled as she unlocked the door and stepped inside. Spike followed her, moving to the window and closing the blinds, keeping the bright sunlight out. He glanced around, taking in the bed and the carpet and the lack of a couch, and let out a long-suffering sigh.

He stripped the top blanket off the bed, curling up in a dark corner, wrapping it around his shoulders. "You know, I'm not crazy," he muttered, falling asleep almost instantly.

Faith stared at him a minute, then rose. She was too wired to sleep, and she was still sore from what Xander had said.

She exited the motel room, looking around. She'd watched where Xander went very carefully, already planning this. She walked to his door and knocked.

"Huh? Wha?" he said sleepily.

"It's me," she said, noticing her voice was even more hoarse and husky than usual. "Can I come in?"

She heard him throw the bolt back, and then he opened the door, peering out at her with his good eye. "What's up?" he asked, his voice a bit cool.

She shuffled her feet. "Spike said you've always done that…thrown yourself in the way of danger like that. Is that true?"

Xander shrugged. He was wearing a flannel shirt, she noticed, and jeans. "I guess so," he said warily.

She swallowed, trying to clear the lump in her throat away. Why was it so hard to breathe suddenly? "I just…that's great. Y'know, heroic. And I get that. And I… I can't stop thinking about you. And wanting you. And wanting you to like me. And maybe approve of me. Maybe be proud of me. And it hurts that you don't trust me… and… I should just go, huh?"

Xander was staring at her with a glazed look. "Um, no. I don't…" For a long moment he just stared at her, dazed by lack of sleep and unable to say anything. Finally he blinked himself out of the trance. "I've already been a notch on your bed post. I don't really want to be just another one. But if… Um, if you… Do you want to come in?"

Faith nodded tightly, unable to find words for happy his simple phrase made her.


	24. Old Loves

Disclaimer: I don't own a thing.

Summary: Post AtS and BtVS, Faith and Xander are approached by a secret government agency. Surprises all around.

Rating: PG-13

Chapter 24: Old Loves

Spike woke up and realized he was alone instantly. He scrambled off the floor, looking around, and noted that the bed hadn't been slept on. He thought about it for a second, remembering what she'd said about getting Xander out of her mind. He sat down on the bed with a frown. He didn't like that; she was, as he'd told her, only going to make her problems with Xander worse, going out and finding some cheap lay somewhere.

"Least you could've done is told me I could have the bed," he muttered under his breath.

He gathered his bag to him, checking the weapons. Then he got up, checking the window. It was twilight, and he knew they ought to move on before dark, before Drusilla could attack again.

On the move they would be harder to track down.

He lay back on the bed, hugging the bag, and thought of all his friends. He thought of Buffy, and wondered what she thought of him now.

It was strangely comforting that it didn't matter much to him what she thought.

It was even more comforting that Dawn had trusted him enough to tell him that she didn't trust him, and that she was more concerned with Xander. And probably Faith too, if he thought about it.

And the fact that she cared made him surprisingly happy. Xander and Faith ought to have somebody looking out for them—they certainly weren't going to do it. They were as reckless as Spike, and even more determined to do the right thing. They were a danger to themselves…and everything evil in the world.

In short, everything Spike was trying to be. And that, again, hurt a little bit, that after he had tried to hard they were still effortlessly so much better than him.

It made him feel a little better that his presence made Xander feel a little guilty and prejudiced. It was the least he could, after Xander's presence made him feel like he hadn't changed at all since he first came to Sunnydale… and he was trying so hard to change, sometimes it hurt.

He sighed, getting up and heading out to find something to eat, the bag staying on his shoulder.

line break-

Faith woke up in Xander's arms.

The thought alone caused a quiver of girlish excitement, something she could honestly say she had never felt before. The fact that his breath was bad and his flannel was scratching her face barely detracted from the feeling.

He stirred, and she adjusted her hold on him. It might have been the first time she'd spent the entire night with a guy—she couldn't ever remember doing it before. Maybe she'd spent a whole night with Robin, but she remembered feeling suffocated and trapped by that bed, and running off more than once just after he'd fallen asleep. She couldn't remember ever spending a whole night with Robin.

She suspected that the reason she could never remember a whole night is because she never spent a whole night. And further, that's probably part of the reason Robin left, because he couldn't understand how anyone could feel suffocated by another body, because he couldn't understand how she could share an intimate moment with him but not a bed.

Xander blinked his eye open. "Faith," he muttered, surprised to see her.

She shrugged, unable to think of anything to say. Good morning seemed too bland, too stupid. Too inane. Anything else…didn't say what she wanted to say.

He nodded warily. "Um." He cleared his throat, and surreptitiously glanced downward, checking to see if they were still fully clothed.

They were. That he had to check hit Faith like a punch, but she tried to hide it.

He looked up and saw it in her face so easily that she wanted to cry. "I'm sorry," he said. "I was tired last night, and I'm…" He trailed off, swallowing again. "I can't make any sense," he said finally.

She wanted very badly to touch his face, but she was worried that he'd flinch, or that he'd try to stop her. It wasn't very far from the face to the neck, and she knew he didn't trust her that much.

She steeled herself. Nobody had ever called her chicken and gotten away with it, and they weren't going to start now.

He did flinch, just a little, when she touched him. But he took a breath and met her gaze, and managed a smile. She stroked the pad of her thumb across his cheek, letting it scrape across the stubble and the soft spots where no hair grew, up over the cheekbone below his missing eye, back towards his ear.

"Spike says I love you," said Faith quietly. She knew it was a mistake to bring Spike into this, but she couldn't actually say she loved him. It was too foreign, too strange. And she still wasn't sure she believed it, although the pit of her stomach seemed to be jumping around like a spastic geek dancing their heart out.

"Oh," said Xander. He reached up, touching her face. "What do you think?"

"I don't know," said Faith. "I told him I didn't believe in love."

Xander sighed. "Yeah, that always complicates things," he said. His finger traced a line down her cheek. "I don't even know what we're doing, here," he said, wonder in his voice. "Do you?"

"No idea," she said. "But it's way better than whatever we were doing before."

Xander laughed. "It is," he agreed. His finger went still, stopping beside her mouth, and he stared at her piercingly, as if he was trying to see something. "I do believe in love, you know."

"You could ask Spike if you love me," said Faith, smiling. "He seems to have all the answers." She moved, letting her body press against him and rolling over slightly to straddle him.

Xander let his hand drop and stared up at her. There was just a hint of fear in his eyes, and it hurt her. She tried to hide it, and leaned down, kissing him lightly before pulling back and getting off the bed.

He watched her go, and she could see the guarded look in his eyes, hiding whatever reaction he had. "I think I might," he said finally. "I don't… I'm afraid if I make a promise, I'll just break it. Again." He swallowed hard when he said again.

She moved back onto the bed, sitting on the foot of it. "I don't want to hurt you," she said.

This was a hard conversation to have, harder than anything had ever been for her. Even breaking up with Robin had been easier. He had raged, but she hadn't really cared what it had done to him, had only cared about how suffocated she felt, and how much she wanted to get free of him.

She did care what happened to Xander, and that made this harder.

Xander sat up. "We have to get Spike to Seattle first," he said. "Then we can…figure this out. I'll ask Dawnie for some time off, some time where we can just figure things out."

Faith nodded. "I'm just gonna take a shower," she said, moving away.

He watched her go, then stood up, heading for the door. "I'll go find Spike, tell him we'll be leaving soon," he said.

He headed out, surprised to find Spike standing out in the open, watching the sun set.

Spike glanced at Xander with surprise. Without a word he turned back to watch the sun set.

His hair was wet, and he had apparently just rebleached it as well, from the bright look and the pinkish glisten to his flesh near his hair.

"It's one of the few things I like about losing my immortality," said Spike, his voice almost companionable. "Well, that and walking into churches without hissing."

His hands were still for once, and he seemed to have more peace surrounding him than Xander would ever have thought possible. It annoyed Xander.

"Faith wandered off last night," admitted Spike, a little sheepishly. "I didn't manage to stay awake long enough to stop her, or ask her where she was going."

"She's in my room," blurted Xander before he had a chance to think about it.

Spike turned around, staring at him. Instead of a laugh, or the expected 'good on you,' he looked ready to punch Xander.

Spike moved forward, getting in Xander's face. "Don't you dare look down on her for this!" he hissed. "She loves you, you know, and that's just the only way she knows how to express it! Don't treat her like a slut or try to close her out! Don't you dare look down on her for being as real as she is! She's, she's a woman, and she has needs, and—!"

"I didn't sleep with her," Xander interrupted him.

Spike stopped dead, staring at him. "Oh," he said finally. "Good." He turned away. "Wish I still had at least the sense of smell," he grumbled. "Make less of a fool of myself at times."

Xander thought about what Spike had said shortly. "You don't have a monopoly on wisdom, you know," he said through gritted teeth. "I know we could screw this up really easily…we already did, once."

Spike nodded. "I did think I had the monopoly on self control these days, but I've always been a little conceited that way," he conceded. "Congratulations. You're much more grown up than I remember. Ready to go?"

Xander stretched, glaring at Spike. "You? Self control?" he asked, his voice sarcastic.

"Oh, yes, ask me how I've managed to keep myself from stalking Buffy all this time," said Spike, just as sarcastically. "Git. I'll have you know I've changed a lot since the bad old days in Sunnydale."

Xander laughed at Spike, taking the time to make it a nasty laugh. "Well, I guess we'll all have a party to celebrate the new you…who has the exact same hair as the old you!"

Spike touched his hair with a sigh. "I don't want to go back to being William," he said flatly. "Now, shut up. Here." He tossed a grocery sack at Xander. "Clothes for you an Faith. I guessed at the sizes, and got it all in black. Figured she'd like it, and it'd be a pleasant improvement on you. And we'll get breakfast somewhere…dinner, whatever. I gassed up the bikes."

Xander thought about it for a minute. "Where are you getting money?" he asked suspiciously, finally getting around to analyzing what they'd been doing recently, and Spike's apparently inexhaustible source of cash.

Spike sighed. "Stole it from Wolfram and Hart when I went on the run. Stupid buggers never cut off Angel's expense account, so I bled it dry. Gonna rat me out for still being evil and bad?" Spike smirked at Xander.

Xander shrugged. "Who would I rat you out to? Everybody knows."

Spike snorted. "Great. Here." He tossed Xander his keys. "You can grab a shower in my room, freshen up. There's soap and stuff; you do remember how to use it, right?"

Xander looked up at the setting sun. "Yeah, sure," he said.

* * *

The Immortal regarded Buffy and Dawn quizzically. "You know I'm a neutral being. I don't take sides," he said shortly. 

"Call it a favor," said Buffy. "To the new Council, the now-much-more-powerful Council."

The Immortal sighed, his long lashes fluttering. "But it's a favor for _them_," he noted, a hint of a whimper in his voice. "I know it is. The too-bright William, the too-dull Liam… did you know that Liam is an Irish form of the name William? Strange, isn't it, that they even share a name? You must know how much I hate them."

Dawn sighed. "_l'Eterno_, we know you hate them. And things aren't so hot with us right now either. But this place, Wolfram and Hart, they have all the power, don't they? If we take them down, who will fill that vacuum of power?"

He turned to her quizzically. "Appealing to my baser instincts, my fallen nature, Dawn? Very worldly of you, little _Alba. _Very well, then, we shall go to fight. _Maggio la vittoria dell'uomo migliore._"

He turned and walked away, closing the door quietly behind him.

For a moment Dawn and Buffy stared at the door, both of them wondering whether the Immortal would be any help in their battle. Then Buffy glanced to Dawn.

"What'd he say?" she asked.

Dawn sighed. "Roughly? May the best man win. Apparently he still thinks his battle is with Spike and Angel…for you."

Buffy laughed. "Kind of full of himself, isn't he?"

"Well, when you've got it…" said Dawn, rolling her eyes. "Go down and tell the girls to get suited up, okay? We go at sunrise, with the light."

"Perfect," muttered Buffy. "Any special weapons?"

"I think Andrew left the supply of rocket launchers. We'll need that," said Dawn.

Buffy hesitated. "Is this going to be dangerous?" she asked.

Dawn shrugged. "The odds are pretty good if your boyfriend pulls through; otherwise, it's going to be a real fight. Either way, they're going down, and there's nothing they can do about it."

Buffy took just a moment to smile. "Unless their Seers have alerted them, in which case we may face tanks," she said.

"Ergo the rocket launchers," replied Dawn. "Don't worry, we're ready for them."

* * *

After spending the whole night on the roads it was a relief to slide into the tacky leather seats and order something cold. Xander leaned back, profoundly relieved to be off the bike. 

Faith slid in beside him, not quite meeting his eyes. "How're you doing?" she asked.

"Sore," he replied.

Spike slid in opposite them. Xander could see the struggle the former vampire was having holding down the snarky remarks, and he braced himself for them.

"We're making good time," mumbled Spike, casting his gaze down. Xander could see that Spike was biting his cheek in an effort not to say anything.

"We'll make Seattle in no time," said Faith.

"We're not going to make it," mumbled Spike. "We'll be ambushed. Told you it wouldn't go well."

Faith snorted. "Well, let them come. Champion of Goodness and Slayer, here." She leaned against Xander, putting a hand on his leg. He nonchalantly wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

Spike glanced up at them, and then back down, then away.

"Just say it!" snapped Faith, having no patience at all for this routine.

Spike glanced up at her, surprised. "Huh? Sorry, I just… no, I've got nothing to say." He looked away again.

"Yes, you do," insisted Faith.

He looked back at her, annoyed. "I died, and they sent me to hell," he said shortly. "That's what this is, you know. A place where I have to stick with him and watch him get the girl…that's hell. He knows; he's died, and he's in hell now, a place where he has to watch me and listen to me gripe about him getting the girl. Lucky you, you died and went to heaven; you get to hang with the man you loved, and you don't seem to hate me as much as I deserve, so I don't really see the downside at all for you."

Xander let out a long sigh. "I hate it when you talk sense," he said shortly.

Spike shrugged. "You grew up and got all mature, I grew up and got all mature. We're all mature and grown up here. Sucks."

"It does!" said Xander fervently.

For a moment they all sat in silence, and then Spike started up again. "So, there's death and destruction down the road for us, and probably worse."

Faith glanced out the window of the diner. "What about Drusilla?" she asked.

"You leave her to me," growled Spike.

"No, I mean, she's outside," said Faith.

Spike glanced out. The sun had just risen, but there were clouds in the sky again, cutting off the light, and she stood there in the half-light of the storm, smiling. There were demons behind her, and Spike reached into the bag slowly.

"Slayer, you just watch the boy, all right? Still have those knives?"

Faith let go of Xander's leg, reaching for the back of her belt. She came up with two knives. "Yes," she growled.

"I've got the one shotgun still, but only one box of ammunition left," growled Spike, passing the bag over the table to Xander. "After that, there's a bow and a bunch of arrows. Save that for vampires. Stay back, pick your shots, don't shoot me or the Slayer."

Spike was holding the sword in a two-handed grip when he stood up, a grim look on his face. He'd taken off the leather coat when he sat down, and he didn't bother to put it on.

"Come on!" he screamed. The few other diners swiveled to look at him, the man standing alone wearing a black tee-shirt, with blazing white hair and a face that could scare a whole roomful of children.

Then the glass window exploded inward, demons swarming towards them. The other patrons screamed, jumping backwards as orange, blue and purple demons charged Spike.

He swung the sword in tight overhand swings, sending bodies flying through the air with impacts that jarred him back a step with each blow.

Faith darted into the fray, pulling demons away from him and slamming the knives in her hand into them, knocking them back and away from the furious fighting in the middle of the diner.

One tried to get behind her, reaching for her with huge claws. A shotgun blast tore him off his feet, sending him flying towards Spike, who slashed at him, tearing his head clean off his shoulders.

"Come on!" screamed Spike again.

The cannon fodder expended, larger demons moved in, demons with weapons and determined looks on their faces. These weren't so easy to fight. They parried Spike's frantic swings, sending blows at him that he was hard pressed to avoid.

Several engaged Faith, although Xander continued to blast them off her back with the shotgun. With her engaged Spike was cut off, alone.

Several converged at once, disarming Spike and punching him, knocking him down. He rolled, coming up swinging with his fists, the sword gone, sending powerful blows that sent demons flying through the air.

One of them clubbed him in the back, knocking him to the ground, and they began kicking him.

At the same time Xander felt the gun get yanked out of his hand. As he reached for the bow Drusilla backhanded him across the face, dropping him to the ground. "Silly boy," she purred.

Faith turned, surprised, ready to jump at the vampire, and one large demon punched her, knocking her down. In a second they were holding her down, pummeling her.

Drusilla giggled. "You can run, but you can't hide, my Spoike." She swayed closer to Spike, leaving Xander lying senseless on the ground. "What is your worst fear now?"

The demons standing over Spike picked him up, holding him tightly as they pushed him forward to face Drusilla.

He spat blood in her face. "My worst fear is that you'll keep prattling on," he spat. "You want to fight me, Dru? Then come on, let's have it, you an me! The way it ought to be!"

She giggled. "You've beat me too many times," she reproved him. "Once to save the world, once to save your Slayer, and once to save this Slayer."

Spike wasn't sure he was following her logic, but he was pretty sure that she was referring to the first time he'd teamed up with Buffy against Angelus, the time he'd offered to stake Drusilla for Buffy, and the other day, when he'd beat her down when she came after them.

And she was right. She'd have to be crazy to fight him again.

Luckily for him, she was crazy.

"What's the matter, Dru?" he taunted. "Afraid of me? Afraid I'll kill you?"

She scowled at him. "There's so many things I wanted to do with you, and you know I'll never have that pleasure, with you dead," she sighed petulantly. "But blood calls blood, Spoike. And now your blood calls the ground."

She stepped back, picking up Xander by the shoulders, lifting him from the ground easily. His head lolled limply, revealing his neck.

"Aw, hell, no," muttered Spike.

She leaned in, nuzzling Xander's neck. "Sweet, sweet blood," she whispered. "He joked of it, and now it's mine."

Her face twisted, shifting, the demon coming to the fore, her teeth stretching and growing into razor-sharp killing instruments, and she opened her mouth wide.

Spike exploded into action, jerking his arms free in a quick twist and throwing the demons back, diving forward and punching Drusilla in the face. She and Xander both fell limply to the ground. More demons swarmed forward but Spike spun, his leg up, kicking them away.

Those who were pummeling Faith stopped, turning and attacking Spike. But he was over the bag of weapons now, and he drew the bow quickly, letting flying with the arrows as quick as he could. The demons fell back, arrows protruding, screaming.

Drusilla attacked Spike then, jumping at him. He spun, stabbing her through the chest with the bow, shattering it. She shrieked, falling back.

"It's plastic, Dru," said Spike foully. "Don't complain. You're not dead yet." He picked the bag up, coming up with a knife as several of the demons charged. He slashed and spun, driving them back.

Drusilla crawled forward onto Xander's limp body, preparing to bite him. Spike tackled her from behind, slamming her into the nearest table. She moaned, and he drew a wooden stake from the bag, slamming it into her chest.

He stared at her blankly as she exploded into dust. "Oh, I hate you!" he spat at Xander's limp form.

Several other demons charged him, and he wasn't fast enough to reach the knife this time. They bowled him over, knocking him to the ground, their fists flying at him.

He curled into a ball, trying to return the blows, but weaker every second.

Then one by one they disappeared, their guttural shrieks of fear fading away quickly.

Spike blinked Drusilla's dust out of his eyes, staring up at his rescuer.

"Oh, hell, no!" he moaned, closing them again.

Angel grinned. "Some thanks would be in order," he informed Spike, reveling in the moment of being Spike's savior.

* * *

A/N: You know, every few months figures out what I'm using to denote line breaks, and fixes it so I can't do that any longer. Bummer. I just noticed that the double dashes I used for the first 18 chapters didn't work after that, went back and fixed those chapters (including a few grammar and spelling errors) and now I have to edit every chapter. Oh, bother. My apologies for not noticing previously. 


	25. Not so evil any more

Disclaimer: I don't own a thing.

Summary: Post AtS and BtVS, Faith and Xander are approached by a secret government agency. Surprises all around.

Rating: PG-13

Chapter 25: Not so evil any more

Spike rose up off the ground slowly, scowling at the too-cheerful vampire facing him. All around him demon corpses were bleeding out on the ugly plastic flooring, but he ignored that, staring at the vampire he hated so much.

Angel edged closer, avoiding the too-bright indirect sunlight from outside. "Is everybody okay?"

Faith stood up shakily. There was blood all over her face, and most of it was her own. "Xander!" she yelled, jumping forward the side of her fallen Watcher.

Xander groaned. "What hit me?" he asked, his voice harsh with pain.

"Drusilla," said Spike, sneering down at them, trying to ignore the pain throughout his body. "Let's get out of here, eh?"

Angel looked back behind him at the skinny girl with the dark hair who'd followed him in, who was holding a blanket, apparently the one he'd been using for cover as he came in. "I think we should stay here a while," he said. "It's getting a bit bright, and, um, do you still have a car with tinted windows?"

Spike scowled. "Not for a while," he said. "After Dru stole mine we took some demons motorbikes. I hate you, you know."

"I hate you too," said Angel absently. "We sort of stole a car…"

Xander was staring at Angel. "What is he doing here?" he croaked.

"Saving us, I think," said Faith, smiling at Angel.

"I'm glad someone's happy to see me," mumbled Angel.

Spike glanced back at Angel's companion, finally taking his eyes off the vampire. He yelped, backing up a few steps.

"What?" said Faith, standing up and assuming a fight position.

"Huh? Oh," said Angel. "This is Dana. She's a Slayer."

"Hi," said Dana, waving.

"She's the one that cut off Spike's hands," said Xander, understanding immediately.

Faith made a face, glancing at Spike to make sure his hands were still there. "I think Xander's concussed," she reported.

Spike held up his arms. "No, really, look. I have scars," he said indignantly.

Faith peered at them. "I'm not having a really weird coma dream, am I? Cuz that seems awfully symbolic of your relationship with Buffy right now."

"Oh, ha bloody ha," said Spike, just a tad bitterly. "I'll have you know… wait, it is, isn't it? How bloody ironic."

While he mused about that Faith helped Xander up. "We can't stay here," she said. "We need to find somewhere to go."

Spike coughed, stepping forward. "I'll go find someplace," he started to say, before pitching forward and collapsing on the floor, landing with a sickening noise not unlike a hammer smashing down on fingers.

Angel moved forward, grabbing the man who'd formerly been his worst enemy. "Take it easy, Spike!" he warned, lifting the bleached blonde to his feet.

Spike scowled at Angel, shaking his hands off. "Don't touch me," he snarled, moving away from Angel. "I'm just a little dizzy." He staggered back.

Dana watched them both carefully. "You're not a vampire," she said suddenly.

He glanced at her in surprise. "How'd you suss me out so quick, love?" he asked, leaning casually against the wall, as if he hadn't just fallen on his face, as if he didn't need the support to stand.

She shrugged. "Too much breathing, too much… I can't feel you, not anymore," she gestured vaguely at her neck. "And, besides that, I think I'd been dreaming it."

"Riiight," drawled Spike. "Still crazy, then?" he asked.

She scowled at him. "Maybe a little, but you're human, aren't you?"

He shrugged, glancing back at Faith, who was holding Xander just a little too tight, her face pressed against the side of his neck. He looked back quickly, but not before noting that Xander actually looked happy about it.

Seeing Xander happy was a physically painful experience, and it took all his newfound maturity not to puncture Xander as painfully as possible.

Spike pushed himself off the wall. "Watch them. I'll go get a motel room or something. Be back soon."

He marched purposefully out into the sunlight.

Angel settled back against the wall, crossing his arms. "How've you been, Faith?" he asked quietly.

Faith turned her head, keeping her cheek pressed against Xander. "Good," she said, and he noticed with surprise that there were tears mixed with the blood on her face.

For a moment he flashed back to the day when he'd saved Xander from Faith, sneaking up behind her as she choked the life from the young man.

It occurred to him that it wasn't the strongest foundation for a relationship.

Of course, those in glass houses shouldn't throw stones. Angel just nodded, wondering why seeing her wrapped around Xander reminded him of seeing a python constricting its prey.

Dana moved closer, scowling. "Hi, I'm a Slayer," she said to Faith. "You are too, huh?"

"Yeah," sighed Faith, tightening her grip on Xander just a little. She turned her face back into his neck.

"Take it easy there, a fella might feel you cared about him," said Xander, who was still a little dizzy.

"I thought I'd failed," whispered Faith, even though she knew no matter how low her voice was Angel and Dana would probably hear her. She could feel a trembling building in the pit of her belly. "I thought you were going to die because I wasn't fast enough, wasn't strong enough."

Xander put a hand on the back of her head, stroking her hair. "I think we're freaking Angel out," he noted.

Angel made a face. "I don't mind," he lied, a bald-faced lie. He wondered how long it would take Spike to get back.

Dana frowned. "Aren't you her Watcher? That's a bit squicky."

line break-

Dawn glanced at the Immortal, who was staring out at the chaos unfolding in front of them. As the assault on the Wolfram and Hart building continued he sighed, shielding his eyes like a blushing child might look away from a passionate kiss.

"I've been meaning to ask you, why exactly do you hate Angel and Spike?" asked Dawn. She was keeping an eye on Buffy, trying to make sure her sister didn't get hurt, but she could multi-task.

"Liam and William? It's a long story," replied the Immortal. "It starts when two yokel vampires began terrorizing Italy, and then thought they could swindle me. I had to teach them a lesson, of course, so I had them kidnapped and seduced their women."

"You mean Darla and Drusilla?" asked Dawn, an eyebrow arching.

"Naturally. And the boys… they take themselves so seriously! Then they had to make a war with me, and come after me, and naturally I must defend myself, and so on and so forth. And then, when William came back, he insisted on killing my minions and bankrupting me! I finally got rid of him only by throwing him in jail for income tax evasion."

"Income tax evasion?" asked Dawn, amused.

"Have you ever seen a vampire pay taxes? It was quite amusing…but then, of course, there was the incident in Prague, and I felt very badly for them both. Drusilla was always quite charming to me, and although young William has always been a thorn in my side, I would not have wished on him what came next."

"Right," snorted Dawn. "Because it was so terrible, wasn't it? He got a soul and it just crushed him."

_L'Eterno_ glanced at her, surprised. "I meant losing Drusilla, of course," he said smoothly.

Dawn rolled her eyes. "You guys are all the same, you know? So, what do you think?"

"They did not see us coming," sniffed the Immortal. Dawn glared at him. He resembled a weasel, she gleefully decided, ignoring all his handsomeness and suave manners. She knew what was under them, and she'd learned long ago not to judge by appearance.

He was a weasel, and all the good looks in the world couldn't fix that.

line break-

Spike settled down onto the bed, rubbing his face. "I'm going to bruise," he said, as if were a monumentous decision rather than an observation that everyone else had already made.

Faith was lying on the other bed beside Xander, cuddled into his side, and she snorted. "You're lucky, I think they busted three of my ribs," she retorted.

Xander glanced at her in surprise. "Really?" he asked.

"Yeah. Maybe you can bandage them up later," she said, wiggling her eyebrows.

Xander coughed.

Spike glanced at them. "Don't think I've forgiven you, either," he growled. Xander looked at him in surprise.

"What? For being too weak to fight off Drusilla?"

"For making me stake her," muttered Spike. "I didn't want to do that. It wasn't how it was supposed to happen!"

Angel, who was lurking in the entryway, shook his head. "If you hadn't, I would have had to," he said simply. "She was too powerful, too dangerous. And if you gave her a soul, too insane. It would never have worked."

Spike growled under his breath, going back to staring at the ceiling.

Dana wandered closer to the ex-vampire, frowning. "So, are you trying to tell me you're automatically good just because you're human? Because I don't buy that, either."

Spike snorted, a half-smile coming to his face. "No, you're too smart for one of those lies, aren't you? No, of course it doesn't."

"I knew it!" said Dana triumphantly, balling her hands into fists.

Angel cleared his throat. "Did Giles say you could kill him?" he asked.

Her face fell, and she backed up.

"I didn't say I was evil!" protested Spike, trying to sit up. After failing he settled back casually as if he hadn't tried in the first place. "I just said I'm not _automatically_ good. It's taken a lot of hard work for me to be as good as I have been!" He scowled at her, a bit of anger in his face. "You really are nuts," he decided, closing his eyes.

Angel chuckled. "Don't mind Spike, Dana. He's never handled criticism very well."

Spike grunted. "How'd you find me?" he asked Angel.

"I, um, had a vision," said Angel sheepishly.

Spike's eyes bugged out. "No way!" he shouted, then coughed, gripping his chest. "No! No!" he moaned, his eyes sliding shut.

"What?" said Faith, worried.

"Um, I'm Spike's Seer," said Angel, looking away.

"I don't believe it!" snapped Spike. "This is hell! Not only do I have to watch monkey-boy get it on with the Slayer, I'm saddled with you as my sidekick!"

Dana frowned, not understanding more than two words out of Spike's outburst. Faith started laughing, then coughed and stopped, although a wide grin stayed on her face. Xander smiled, a smile that was much too happy.

"It is hell," grumbled Angel. "And I should know. I've been there a few times."

"Hey, don't you guilt-trip me!" snapped Spike. "I went to hell to save your sorry butt!"

Angel sighed, leaning against the wall. "Well, we staked Drusilla. Now all we have to do is take down the remaining branches of Wolfram and Hart, and we'll be ready for the next apocalypse."

Xander cleared his throat, checking his watch. "And the Italian branch should be down already… what? Give Dawn an army of Slayers, what did you think would happen?"

Angel covered his face. "Well, it's a good start," he conceded.

"Yeah," muttered Spike. "Real good start."

Dana frowned. "Isn't this a good thing?" she asked suspiciously.

Spike groaned, rolling onto his side so he could see her. "Now your Slayers are going to be a target too. We have to find out who's running this, and cut them down before they can attack your girls."

"I'm not letting them kill a single girl!" said Angel fiercely. "Not one!"

Spike nodded, a scowl reappearing on his face. "That girl, Eve, she may have something to do with this," he said.

"Uh, no," said Angel, looking away. "I…killed her."

"Angelus went after her? I thought he would have liked her," said Spike, to the confusion of the others.

"Well, yeah, but she annoyed him," admitted Angel. "So, we can't start there. What do we do?"

"D-boy had a few ideas," muttered Spike. "Something to do with his fancy law classes and tracing the money accounts back. I couldn't follow it more than two sentences. I told him to work on it, when he had time."

"Great," muttered Angel. "Connor's good at research?" he added after a moment.

"Very good," Spike assured him. "Taught me a thing or two, and you know how hard that is."

"Because you're such a know it all?" asked Faith.

"Because his skull's so thick," growled Xander.

Angel laughed. "Because his attention span's so short," he told them. "You have Connor's number, or should we swing by?"

Spike groaned. "Swing by? I don't think so… might blow his cover. I'll just call him. Anyone got a cell phone?"

"I've got mine," said Xander. "Back pocket."

A second later Faith handed Spike the cell phone, a broad grin on her face. He took it with a snort of disgust, eyeing the phone as if it were contaminated. He snapped it open and dialed. "With our luck he's in class," growled the blonde.

Angel smiled proudly. "Of course he is," he muttered. "He's a good student, right?" This earned him eye-rolls from everyone but Dana, who frowned, not understanding.

Spike began touching his eyes, poking at them. "Argh," he grumbled, finally managing to peel his contact lenses out. He carefully deposited them on the tiny table between the beds. He blinked a few times.

"You're wearing contacts?" asked Angel, surprised.

"The glasses would fly off in the middle of a fight," said Spike. "And I'm vain. Quite like my reflection, now that I can see it." Then the phone stopped dialing, and Spike fumbled with it. "Connor? Sorry. Yeah, things are peachy. How's that project? Oh, really? Where? Great. Call me back. Yeah, it's Xander's phone. Call him back, then. Yeah, I'll be waiting. Maybe. No. As a matter of fact, he's here with me. No. Really? Tell her to come to Boston and wait with you. I have a feeling… yeah, okay. Say hi to your sister for me."

Angel sighed. "Can you tell him to call a number in England? Old contact of mine?"

"Too late, he hung up," said Spike, tossing the phone at Xander. "He'll call back tonight. Ugh. Wake me when he calls."

His eyes slid shut, and for a minute Angel stared at his former Childe, the vampire he'd never wanted.

He hated him so much just then that he considered throwing something at him as he tried to sleep.

line break-

Dawn scowled. "So, Connor and Spike had already gutted these bad boys once," she said, tapping her fingers on the side of the file folder _l'Eterno _had given her.

Buffy nodded, playing with the handle of her axe. "But they'd been hard at work rebuilding," she replied. "Why is that?"

Dawn continued tapping her fingers as they walked up the steps of the tiny apartment they'd been working out of. "I need to call Connor. Did we get a contact number?"

"No," said Buffy.

"Well, if he's not hiding he should be pretty easy to find," said Dawn. "And he can answer some of this. Clearly there's still some centralized authority directing them, despite Spike's… what'd he call those demons? The Senior Partners?"

"And he and Connor were both pretty sure some of them, or most of them, were here, with their armies," said Buffy.

"Well, at least their armies," said Dawn. "However, even if Spike did destroy their dimension… where's Willow? I need something."

"Brazil," said Buffy.

Dawn took her cell phone out, dialing. "Hi? Kennedy? Yeah, can I speak to Willow? Thanks. Hi! Willow! I need to know if you can find out about recent interdimensional portals. Yeah. A whole list. There was? The same time Spike came back? That's all I needed. Yeah."

Dawn turned the phone off, turning to Buffy. "There were about a dozen portals, almost at the same time as Spike returned. They ran here like rats out of a sinking ship."

Buffy frowned. "So, where are they?"

"Good question," replied Dawn. The look on her face said all that needed saying.

line break-

When Angel woke up Spike was gone. He sniffed the air quickly, checking for intruders. The only scents there were familiar ones.

He moved to the door, hesitating. It was after sunset, but his instinct told him better safe than sorry.

He darted out the door, braving the potential deadly rays of heaven.

Spike was leaning against the wall, staring off to the west. "I never get tired of that," he muttered.

Angel stayed in the darkest shadows, trying to ignore the tingling all over his skin, the feel of worms come to feast. "What are you doing?" he asked.

Spike shrugged. "I'm watching the sun set, git," he said shortly. "What're you doing?"

"I was… looking for you," said Angel.

Spike snorted. "Thanks, Gramps. Did D-boy call back yet?"

"No," said Angel.

"Too bad," said Spike. "So, I hear Brazil is nice this time of year."

"What?" said Angel, surprised. "How'd you know where I sent Nina!"

"D-Boy found out, of course," said Spike. "He's the brains of our little operation. Hard to believe, him being your son and all. Want to go visit her?"

"What happened to hunting them down like dogs?" asked Angel.

Spike shook his head. "They know we're back, now," he said contemptuously. "They saw me stake Dru, saw you save me. Now it's the old routine. You get the visions, we go after them. We don't get any useful visions, do we?"

Angel thought about it. "Not often."

"Well, we're going to have to find some way to find them. But that's long term. You need to let your lady know you're alive and kicking."

Angel sighed. "And you?"

Spike glanced at him. "Give my cookie dough a chance to bake," he said smirking. "Besides, wouldn't shagging me lose you your soul?" His eyes danced with joy; baiting Angel made him feel alive in a way that fighting never could.

Angel glowered at him. "You know what I mean, Spike."

"I do," said Spike, sighing. He nodded his head back at the motel room. "Those two, they've got something real, you know. And I want something like that."

Angel thought about it. "And you never got that from Buffy?"

Spike snorted. "Buffy never loved me, not really, and we both know it. Cheap shot."

Angel shrugged. "That's what I do."

Xander opened the door behind Angel, limping slightly. "Um, Connor's on the phone," he said.

Spike came back, taking the phone from him. "Connor? Yeah. What? No, I don't think so. I mean, where's the irony in that? Yeah. You mean…? Cripes. I knew that one would come back to haunt me. Find Sarah, and get her to your parents. Yeah, I don't want to leave her in Boston without you. Well, then leave her! But get your butt to LA."

Spike closed the phone. "We have some problems."


	26. drama queen

Disclaimer: I don't own a thing.

Summary: Post AtS and BtVS, Faith and Xander are approached by a secret government agency. Surprises all around.

Rating: PG-13

Chapter 26: Drama queen

Faith watched Dana as she went outside after the vampire who'd brought her there. "If anyone can help her, it's Angel," said Faith softly.

Xander was trying to shave, and he glanced at her in surprise. "What?" he said.

"Angel. He's good with people who're skating the edge," said Faith. "Pulls them back. Like he pulled me back."

Xander scowled into the mirror. "Whereas I failed?" he asked, just a little bitterly. He didn't like that, either, noted Faith, didn't like it that Angel could do what he couldn't do.

"Wasn't your fault," said Faith, walking up behind and hugging him. He was stiff, and she sighed, clinging to him.

She could feel the walls pushing in on them, the dark green ugly wallpaper staring down at her.

"I hate being the bad guy," muttered Xander.

"It was kind of fun for me," said Faith. "But, yeah, right there with you. Come on, we fix this, we can get them out of our hair for a while."

"I don't know how to fix it," grumbled Xander.

"I think the vamps do," said Faith.

When they were finished they headed outside to join the others. Spike was standing alone in front of the door, staring out into the darkness.

"I hate you," he said to Xander, his voice almost whimsical.

Angel melted out of the shadows to their right. "He's just saying that because he had to stake Dru," he said, his voice calm and smooth.

"Gah!" said Xander, jumping. "Less of the stalky predator thing!"

Faith grinned. "I knew he was there, Xan," she said.

He frowned at her. "Must have been on my blind side," he grumbled, even though Angel had been to his right, in his line of sight.

"We have to go to LA," said Spike. "I made a pretty big mistake, and it's coming back to haunt us."

Xander sighed. "Oh, this is familiar. Spike messes up, and we have to pull his fat out of the fire."

Spike glowered at him. "By we I mean me an Angel, boy. You and your Slayers are quite welcome to run back to daddy Watcherbucks."

Angel moved closer to Spike and casually smacked him in the back of the head. "Of course, we'd love some fire power…given that we'll be walking right into a firestorm."

"Consequences!" growled Spike. "Who'd have thought? We weakened the dimensional fabric between their world and ours with our double-punch in the same spot. They got through in LA. And now they've managed to find out where I buried the blasted things."

"Oh, really?" asked Xander, his eyes widening. "What blasted things, may I ask? And why were we not told of this before?"

"I did," muttered Spike. "Only maybe you weren't listening when I said that Blue and I had done some things nobody else would understand? No, you thought I was crazy, and you just tuned it out completely. Blue and I, we were doing good till I got killed. When I came back, I went looking for her. And…" He looked away from them all, suddenly completely still.

Faith misinterpreted the action, turning the direction he had turned, expecting some threat. There was nothing there.

She looked back at Spike. There were tears running down his face.

"You liked this girl, huh?" asked Xander.

"How'd you know Illyria was a girl?" asked Angel, glancing to Xander.

Xander shrugged. "With Spike, it's always a girl. I don't think he's ever had a single friend who was a guy."

Angel shrugged. "Well, there was that fellow, Andrew, who you sent down to check on us."

Spike turned towards Angel, a disbelieving look on his face. "Andrew? Oh, bloody hell!"

"So you buried these things?" asked Xander, hoping to stop a fight. Fun as it would be, he was afraid they'd start hitting him.

Spike sighed. "I buried Illyria," he muttered. "Her head's in north LA, under a mall. I left an arm near the crater that was Sunnydale…li'l bit of irony, there. And the rest of her is scattered. They're going to resurrect her, and then there'll be hell to pay."

"Wasn't she on your side?" asked Xander, helplessly confused now.

"Yeah," muttered Spike.

-line break-

Buffy watched Dawn and Giles conferring in hushed tones, feeling a rush of pride. She'd never been very good at being a leader, but apparently between the positive examples she'd given and the bad ones, she'd given Dawn a blueprint.

The tall brunette glanced back at her and tossed a quick, saucy grin her way. "Would you like to join us at the big kids table?" she called over to Buffy.

Buffy glanced at the other Slayers around her. None of them reacted, so she shrugged and stood up, heading over to the Watchers' table.

Robin Wood was seated beside Dawn, scowling down at the table. "Why'd we send Andrew to Seattle?" he asked, a hint of petulance in his voice.

"He knows how to handle Angel and Spike," said Dawn. "Now, this last report was kind of disjointed. Xander said something about a dead goddess being dismembered and buried in ten different places by Spike. Apparently the bad guys want to revive her."

Buffy scowled, leaning back in her seat. "Wasn't she on his side?"

"That's something Xander doesn't get either. Spike's playing it close to the chest."

"Again!" snapped Robin. "I wish I'd been in on this from the beginning."

Giles shook his head. "At this point we don't have a lot of choices," he said. "Spike and Angel made this mess, and they're dealing with it. I don't want to put Slayers at risk for them—but I don't want their mess moving into our backyard again."

Buffy leaned forward. "Wait a minute. Spike buried her, but who killed her? I've seen Spike face a hell goddess, and last time it didn't end so good for him."

Dawn scowled. "More he won't tell us. Worse, he and Angel are closing ranks. Angel wouldn't give Xander any details on this goddess either."

Giles took his glasses off and pinched the bridge of his nose. "And Faith and Xander are staying with them…and taking Dana with them…to LA," he summed up, for Buffy's benefit.

Robin shook his head. "What's the American military doing?"

"Nothing," said Giles. "I spoke to Riley. He considers this outside his jurisdiction, although he did say he'd give support to Spike if he asked for it. Spike, not us. I'm a little uneasy about that."

Robin squinted at Buffy. "I suppose you want to be there?"

Buffy thought about it for a second. "That depends," she said. "Do we have any idea what they'll be facing?"

"No," said Giles.

Dawn narrowed her eyes at Buffy, examining her sister. "And we have several Apocoli looming in Africa, Germany, and China right now."

"Apocoli?" asked Robin, confused.

Buffy smirked. "A plural for Apocalypse. Riley said—anyway, we already have a Slayer and one of our very few Watchers with Spike. I don't think we can do any more than this."

Dawn nodded triumphantly. "You're right, of course. I'll call Andrew, and pull him back to China. That's the nearest for him."

"Wait a minute," said Robin, interrupting. His face was stretched in a scowl. "What about the danger to Faith and Xander if this turns bad?"

"We'll just have to trust that they'll call for backup if things go wrong," said Dawn. "Giles, do we have an English translation of the Sumerian texts?"

"The early ones or the later ones?"

"Both."

line break-

Xander watched Faith sleep while they bounced along the dark road. They were crammed into the back seat and she was curled up in a ball, her head resting in his lap.

"Long time coming, eh?" asked Spike, from his seat on the other side of Faith.

Xander scowled at him. "Don't talk to me," he said brusquely.

Spike shrugged. "Yeah, never was sunshine and flower between us, was it?" he asked. "Despite being roomies for so long."

Xander shuddered, shaking his head. "Worse than the times you tried to kill me, truly," he said morbidly. "Why, you expected differently?"

"No, I was just thinking about what you said about never making friends with guys. Kinda weird, really."

Angel leaned over the front seat, glancing back. "I think it's because you were a geek, and you never had any friends," he said shortly.

"Eyes on the road," said Spike coldly.

"What?" said Xander. "Who was a geek? Spike? No way! I thought he was William the Bloody before he was turned?"

"Yeah," muttered Spike, turning his head away from Xander and pretending to look out the window.

Dana, in the passenger's seat, turned around to face Spike. "Your hair was different in China," she said. "It was brown."

"That's the natural color, pet," said Spike, a bit lazily.

"William the Bloody Awful Poet!" sang Angel from the front seat.

"Besides that, Angelus put me off friends right good," said Spike. "Besides, I had Clem, didn't I?"

"Wasn't Clem a bit fruity?" asked Xander.

Spike glared at him. "Oh, don't you start. If I had been making bets on which one of Buffy's friends was gay that first time I met you all… the smart money wasn't on Red."

"Hey!" said Xander, outraged. "That's… just what Larry said."

Spike frowned. "Who?"

"Um, an old friend," said Xander. "Never mind."

Spike grinned, turning back and glancing at Dana. "You have a question, fruit-of-the-loony?"

She shrugged. "Just looking for signs of evil."

He shot a British hand gesture at her. "Anytime you want a demonstration of how evil I can be, love, just ask," he said, smirking at her.

Xander scowled at him. "You still say that like it's a good thing," he noted.

Spike shrugged. "Fish gotta swim," he said, grinning. "At least I don't run around with dreadlocks."

"Huh?" said Xander.

"Long story," said Angel.

"I'm getting dizzy," said Dana. "But it's an incredibly fun kind of dizzy watching hot guys argue."

"Oy!" said Faith sleepily. "I have dibs on this one!"

As she said it she grabbed Xander, a bit tighter than she would have if she'd been awake. In response he jumped, letting out a yelp, nearly dumping her off his lap. Spike had to grab her ankle to keep her from kicking him in her half-asleep surprised jerk.

"Watch it!" said Spike, pushing them away from him.

Faith settled in on Xander's lap. "Sorry," she said, grinning at him. She blinked a couple of times, trying to wake up. "Where are we?"

"Almost to LA," said Angel. "We have a rest stop coming up. Anybody want to stop?"

"I could use a stretch," grumbled Spike.

"Almost to LA?" said Faith. "How long was I asleep!"

"It's a nice car," protested Angel. "It likes to go 120!"

Faith stared at the back of his head. "Okay, a new addendum to the list of disturbing things about Angel. Anybody else have any secrets to spill?"

"I staked my mum after I turned her," said Spike. "But everybody knows that these days."

"That explains a lot," muttered Dana.

"Don't start with me, symbolic girl!" snapped Spike. "I'll have you remember you cut my hands off while I was trying to help you, eh?" He glanced back at Xander, sneering at the dark-haired boy and the girl in his lap. "We weren't that far from LA to begin with, don't let Angel impress you."

Angel continued driving silently, but he watched the former vampire out of the corner of his eye. There was something disturbing about the way Spike was acting, and he didn't like it. Usually he would get a much snappier response when he needled Spike.

He supposed it was that Spike was human, which annoyed him even more.

"We'll have to stop in East LA, near the old warehouses where I killed the d'Frager demon," said Spike, still sulking a little. "Take this next exit. Fastest way to get there."

Angel shook his head. "I wish you'd explain this," he said quietly.

"Explain it!" demanded Spike. "Bloody hell, then I'd have to understand it."

They pulled up into the empty parking lot, and Spike scrambled out of the car, shivering and rubbing his arms at the chill night air. "How long till dawn?" he asked.

"About an hour. Let's get this over with and find a place to stay," said Angel, getting out of the car. The others followed him.

"It's over there, by the Dunkin Donuts," said Spike.

They made an odd group, wandering towards the shop. A tall vampire with hair sticking straight up, a darkly-clothed punk-rocker-lookalike with shockingly white hair, the Slayer and her Watcher, and the crazy Slayer hanging back, behind them, staring with wide eyes around the city.

"Yeah, right there," said Spike, pointing to a spot on the pavement. "Smash that pavement up, eh?"

Angel growled, glancing around. "There," he said, finding a concrete block and picking it up, throwing it at the pavement.

It hit with a crash, shattering the pavement. Then the dirt underneath started jerking spastically.

"What's that?" asked Faith.

"Trouble," sighed Spike.

A disembodied arm flew out of the hole, landing on the ground beside Angel.

"Neat," he said, leaning over to pick it up.

As soon as he touched it the arm lashed out, muscles straining, grabbing his arm. He grimaced from the sudden strong grip. "What—?"

It used the leverage of his arm to swing the arm around, using the wrist muscles, and swept his legs out from under him. Then, still holding his arm in an iron grip, it began to pummel him with the shoulder.

"Ow!" he yelped, trying to get it off.

Faith jumped forward and grabbed the arm, pulling it off Angel with a yank. "Stinking –hey!" she screamed as it doubled back, grabbing her throat.

As it squeezed she tried to pull it off, but couldn't get it off. Dana leapt forward, grabbing it and trying to help. It was too strong.

Then Spike was there, pushing Dana away and grabbing hold of the exposed bluish skin of the hand with both of his. Instead of pulling he started massaging the hand. "Come on, pet, it's just me," he said, his voice surprisingly gentle.

The hand snapped free, and Faith fell to the ground, gasping for breath.

Xander run up, kneeling down beside her and holding her. "Are you okay?" he asked.

She nodded, and he stood up, getting in Spike's face. "Another one of your pets endangering us all!" he shouted incoherently.

"Actually, I'm sort of her pet," said Spike, smirking. "How's that for irony? Symbolism?" He glanced to Dana, who was scowling at him.

"It's not funny," said Dana. "She nearly hurt us."

"Well, she's probably in a lot of pain herself," Spike pointed out reasonably. "So of course she lashed out. She's hurtin, people! I'd think you, especially, could get that."

Angel was rubbing his jaw as he rose, staring at Spike. "So she's still a good guy?"

"Much as she ever was," sniffed Spike.

"You were sort of unclear on that," said Angel.

"Well, it's a long story…"


	27. Drama goddess?

Disclaimer: I don't own a thing.

Summary: Post AtS and BtVS, Faith and Xander are approached by a secret government agency. Surprises all around.

Rating: PG-13

Chapter 27: Drama Goddess?

As they rode along Spike kept the blue arm cradled in his arms like a baby, which Faith couldn't stop laughing about. Xander chose to scowl instead.

Dana was now turned all the way around in her seat watching Spike. Her continued fascination with him was a matter of some annoyance to him.

"What?" he asked sharply.

"You said they destroyed her, and that's why you did what you did to her," said Dana. "But they destroyed Angel too, and you didn't cut him up and drop him in holes."

"It was different," said Spike. "I don't think any of you comprehend just what went on then. It was crazy. I was crazy. She was—"

"Crazy?" offered Xander.

Spike scowled. "A little," he conceded.

"And the only solution was burying her?" asked Xander.

Spike sighed heavily. "I really wish D-boy were here," he said. "He understood. That, and he did most of the work, you know."

"And you cannot imagine how much that doesn't make me feel better," muttered Angel. "He was supposed to be spared my life by the choices I made."

"Didn't work out," said Spike. "It'll never work out. No more than you or I could walk away from it. Even if our powers were taken away, we could never walk away from this. And he still has his powers. He's a hero. A champion. Get over it. He went to Boston, and did more damage there than a busload of Slayers could have—no offense to you Slayers, but someone like him can walk right into the middle of a group of demons and just ask questions."

"Why?" asked Faith. "Is he any less human than me?"

"Well, yeah," said Spike. "He's a freak. A big freak. A bigger freak than me, a bigger freak than Angel. Listen, it's not that we're more dangerous than you, or that we're stronger than you; we're not. It's that we skate the line. You know why Slayers can't kill humans? Because they're pure. Pure power. That's what you are. Pure goodness. We're not. We're the hit men, the bad men, the things that go bump in the night. We're not purity or angels, nothing at all like you!"

Dana stared at him. "I'm pure goodness?"

"You're pure goodness screwed up!" he snarled. "When Slayers touch darkness, like you two, you burn up!"

"Like us?" asked Angel, amused.

"It was the other way around for us," replied Spike. "Things of evil getting touched by the light. Anyway, Illyria is a perfect example of that. How can you connect to her? How can you even understand her? A hell goddess? One of the Old Ones, awoken and stripped of her power? You would just fight her. Go get Olaf the troll god's hammer and pound her. Me an Angel? We took her in. We fought for her."

Dana frowned. "And they call me crazy," she muttered.

"Hey, I was crazy long before you!" growled Spike. "I've been crazy twice, and before that my woman was crazy! So don't you go all 'I'm the crazy one' on me! I know crazy!"

"See what I mean?" said Dana.

"No," said Angel. "Spike. Focus. Illyria. You buried her. Why?"

"Because it was what had to happen," said Spike, as if Angel were insane.

"That's an abstraction," said Angel. "Specifically. Concretely. Why?"

"Because she was going to destroy the world again," said Spike, huffing noisily.

Dana shook her head. "That's not too much better, but it's a start," she said. "Was she evil again? Because if so, I call dibs on killing her."

"You can't kill her," said Spike.

"I beg to differ. Evil, and a demon. I don't even have to get permission from Mister Giles first!"

"I don't mean you aren't allowed, I mean you can't. She's too powerful. D-Boy and I were her only friends, and that's the only reason she let us hack her into small bits and dump her in several locations. And she's still alive, you notice." He waved the arm at Dana. "Not that I wouldn't like to see you try to kill her, it would be pretty funny to watch, but I can't be held responsible for the consequences."

Angel snorted. "Now he's talking about consequences. The world must be ending."

Dana glanced at him. "Hey, no making fun of consequences and crazy people. I'm just getting a handle on them."

"Not your consequences, love, mine," said Spike patiently.

"Spike and consequences. If only Buffy had known," said Xander, sighing dramatically.

Faith jabbed him with an elbow, gently. "Ow," he said, rubbing his stomach.

Spike glanced down at the arm in his lap. He grinned at it suddenly, a wicked grin with a hint of naughtiness. "Of course, the bad guys don't know Illyria's short-circuiting big-time," he said. "They think she's still one of the baddies, one of the nasties."

"And she isn't?" asked Xander.

Spike shrugged. "All a matter of perspective," he muttered.

* * *

Connor glanced into the backseat at his sister, who was still fast asleep. "Sarah?" he called gently. "Hey, Sarah?"

She stirred, looking up. "Huuhhhwwasss?" she moaned.

"Yeah, exactly," he said, nodding. "Anyway, we're nearly home. I'm counting on you to protect mom and dad, Sarah. They don't know about the things that stalk the night, not like you and I do. They don't know enough to be afraid. They don't know enough to lock the doors and not invite strangers in."

Sarah scowled, sitting up. "They don't know enough to figure out that their son is actually some vampire freak," she muttered.

"Actually, despite my parentage, I'm not actually—what'd you say? You're not supposed to know that. Nobody knows except me, Angel, and Lorne."

"And all those people you told in that hell dimension who came back. What was her name? Buffy? She mentioned it to me, that the freaky vampire in the basement was your real dad."

"Oh."

Connor drove on silently. His brow pulled down in a brooding expression his father would have been proud of. "You know, family isn't blood," he said finally. "Spike is family, and that isn't blood. Family is commitment. That's why marriage is so important. It's a choice about who you really want your family to be. I've chosen both families, really, my adoptive family and my blood family."

"Are you trying to explain this to me, or you?" asked Sarah. "Because I really don't have a problem with this. Not at all."

"No, it's just a little odd you didn't mention this until now," he replied.

She smirked. "Oooh, secrets?"

He shuddered. "Don't even go there, kid! Secrets… secrets are bad. Very, very bad. I mean, a level of bad you don't understand. A downright Oedipal level of bad."

"You slept with your mother?"

"No, she died when I was born. The one I slept with was my dad's girl, who was possessed by an ancient evil that needed my seed to bring itself into existence."

"Ew!"

"And who had been like a mother to me when I was a baby, although I don't really remember that part."

"EW!"

"Anyway, like I said, secrets are really, really bad."

There was a deeply uncomfortably silence for a while.

"I so don't know you. Ick-boy."

"Ah, you always knew I was ick-boy, even before you knew the details. Besides, it was fated. And really hot."

"I am so telling mom you said that."

"What?"

"I mean it. She is grounding your butt."

"Oh, come on!"

* * *

"Somewhere, somebody knows what you're talking about. And they're unhappy."

Spike scowled up at Xander from the empty hole he was crouching in. "Zip it! They already have her head, which means the time bomb is ticking again. It's heart, of course, it's always the heart. That's where the power is."

He had the arm slung over his shoulder, holding the hand. It was flexing occasionally, although to Xander's eye it looked a little weaker.

"They're using Illyria as an Apocalypse starter?" asked Angel, confused.

"Nit," muttered Spike. "They're tearing her apart, trying to turn her against us, to turn her back into the monster she can be."

Angel sighed. "I feel like a dentist trying to get your fangs, Spike!" he said, only distracted a little by the laugh from Xander reminding him that he'd forgotten again that Spike was a human now. "This is, it's just passive-aggressive behavior! Controlling us by withholding things!

Spike scowled at him. "I don't know these things, Angel," he said, struggling to control his voice, trying to keep himself from attacking Angel. "I just know little bits. And I was sort of crazy for a little while, although I got better."

"He's a complete nutter," declared Dana. "Complete and total."

Angel glanced up at the dark sky, closing his eyes. "Sunup in fifteen minutes. I need to find somewhere to stay."

Spike pointed at a nearby warehouse. "Right there. Blast it all! This is turning sour. Angel, can you track her by scent?"

Angel gave him an odd look. "Illyria can be hard to track," he said.

As they moved into the warehouse Angel seemed to deflate a little. "I'm kind of hungry," he said.

"Sod it," muttered Spike. "No more than a pint." He offered his wrist to Angel, who recoiled.

"Spike!" he said, shock written across his face. "You—I can't believe you—stop it!"

Spike laughed at his discomfort. "All right, I'll nip out and find a butcher. Anyone got some kind of bag I can stuff er arm in, take er with me?"

Dana stared at him. "You're going to take a disembodied arm out into the daylight?"

"I can't think of anything else to do," said Spike. "Hope you don't mind if I borrow your car, wanker."

Angel tossed him the keys. "You get a scratch on the paint, I get a pound of flesh," he muttered.

Spike grinned. "Is it even your car?"

"Buffy's," said Angel. "Which makes it oh so much worse."

Xander thought about that for a second. "How on earth did you get Buffy's car here from England?" he asked.

"Long story involving an airport, a machine gun, and a clown," said Angel. "Also, Dana helped."

Dana grinned. "I hate clowns," she confided.

Spike sighed. "Crazy girl, you're with me. You lot stay here with Angel. I'll just go take care of things, and we'll be right back." He glanced at Dana. "An her too."

* * *

_I thought you were dead._

Somehow, she knows that hearing voices is not a good sign.

_Did we succeed? Did we fail? Why are you here?_

Because hell is here, on earth. Isn't that what the Senior Partners have said all along?

_The others never understood, anyway._

How could they? Besides, she was dead, wasn't she?

_Dismembered. Bit of a favor, really._

There were other voices, a quiet murmur, and she could feel her heart beating again.

_Time bomb._

Last time had been a wave of destruction hard for anyone to comprehend. This time was even worse, a betrayal.

_Besides, we won, you know? Took the fight to them and freed Angel._

This world around her seemed to shift and phase, ripples of unreality spreading outward.

_You're destroying the world._

She was dying.

_Cookie cutter ideas, cookie cutter minds! Do they even know what insanity is?_

She was dying, and they'd broken his mind with their infliction of a gift never meant for him. She wanted to laugh out loud, since she finally got the joke, but it was too late.

_I ditched the others, and I'm coming to find you._

They wouldn't have understood anyway.

* * *

"I asked you to come with me because you're kind of crazy," said Spike.

Dana frowned at him. "And that's supposed to reassure me?"

"Where we're going, no sane man would follow," said Spike. "Of course, we're not going there alone. That would be nuts."

"Where are we going?" asked Dana.

"Just up to Sunnydale," replied Spike. "That's where I died the second time. Two out of three. Heh. I buried part of her there."

"Which part?"

"The other arm."

"And they don't have it?"

"Of course they don't have it yet! I can tell."

"How?"

"I'm in psychic communication with Illyria."

Dana stared at him. "Wow. You really are crazy."

"Nit!" spat Spike. "Why do you think I have trouble holding on to reality? How do you think I managed to keep powers like these for so long? The Powers That Be, you think they gave me these powers? Screw them. I was the Champion for goodness, but they retired me. Put me out to pasture. Angel hasn't thought about it, or he'd realize it. When I came back, I had no powers. I couldn't have any powers. I was weak. I was human."

"You're not weak now," noted Dana.

"Of course not! I knew what I had to do, and I knew what I would need to do it. Connor and I, we found Blue. She was destroying the world, dying. They'd done things to her… horrible things. We fixed it."

Spike skidded the tires as he entered a parking garage, the tires screeching as they tore across the hot pavement.

"Why are we here?" asked Dana. "What happened to getting blood?"

Spike stopped, idling the motor. "It was a lie, pet. We aren't going to get Angel blood, we're going to go do this thing up proper."

The door behind Dana opened, and Connor slid into the seat behind Spike. "Hey, Spike," said Connor, his voice cool. "Who's this?"

"Crazy Slayer," said Spike. "I figured we could use the firepower."

Connor shrugged. "Whatever you say," he said, but there was just a hint of doubt in his voice.

Dana turned to look at him. "Ah, another human ally. How odd. I guess you know that you're both insane, right?"

Connor glared at her. "I haven't been insane for years!" he complained.

Spike snorted, chuckling. "Common family illness," he said cryptically.

"Denial or insanity?" asked Dana.

"Are you sure she's crazy?" asked Connor, suspicious.

"She's here with us, inn't she?"

"Point."

* * *

Angel scratched his head, trying to rid himself of the uneasy feeling that he was missing something. Ever since Spike had left something had been itching in his brain, and he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

Xander and Faith were talking in quiet, hushed tones, leaning in close to each other. Angel ignored them.

"And her too," said Angel aloud.

"What?" said Faith, turning to face him. Xander looked annoyed at the intrusion.

"Spike's going to meet Connor," said Angel. "He said Connor was coming here, and he said 'we'll' be coming back, and Dana too."

Faith frowned. "Why would he take Dana to meet Connor?"

Angel grimaced. "Because you or I would have demanded to know why he was heading off for Sunnydale," he said finally.

"What? Sunnydale?" said Xander, surprised. "Why would you say that?"

"Because I rigged the stolen car's LoJack," said Angel, pulling out a tiny handheld monitor from his pocket. "The little idiot didn't even ditch my car."

"Why'd you do that?" asked Faith, standing up.

Angel rolled his eyes. "He has a habit of stealing my cars," he said flatly. "And I had a suspicion he wasn't going to be straight with me."

Xander stared at him. "You don't trust Spike!" he blurted out.

"Of course not."

"Yes!" crowed Xander, jumping up and dancing around. "I'm not the only one! I'm not the only one!"

Faith stood up, stretching slowly, a dangerous look on her face. "What's going on here?" she asked Angel. Angel stood up, heaving a sigh.

"I don't think Spike is evil," he said. "I assume that's what you're asking. But Spike is… well, he's unstable. A little crazy. And maybe that's good—who else would break into hell to save me? But at the same time, I don't see any good end from this."

Faith shook her head. "No! Spike isn't lying to us. He couldn't be."

"I didn't say he was lying," said Angel. "I said he's keeping us out of this. Probably to protect us."

"Protect us?" said Xander, sobering suddenly. "Why?"

"Because it was Illyria who killed me, and who killed him," said Angel. "He doesn't think I remember, but I do. They turned her against us somehow. She was still standing when I died. He said it himself; he and Connor dealt with her later, chopping her up. And he wouldn't explain that, no matter how hard I pressed. They're resurrecting her to kill us, and he's trying to protect us. And I have to protect him."

"Why?" asked Xander.

"Because he's only human," said Angel. "Because he died protecting me last time. Because he brought me back from hell. Because he's the only one left, the last of my family, besides my son. And because he took my son with him. And besides all that, he took a crazy Slayer with him for backup."

Xander thought about it. "Ugh," he said finally. "I'm about to go save Spike. I don't think it gets any worse than this."


	28. The goddess in question

Disclaimer: I don't own a thing.

Summary: Post AtS and BtVS, Faith and Xander are approached by a secret government agency. Surprises all around.

Rating: PG-13

Chapter 28: The goddess in question

Connor leaned forward across the back seat, putting his head between Spike and Dana. "So, I'm Connor," he said, offering her his hand. She stared at it uncertainly, her big eyes wide. "You're supposed to take it and shake it gently," he prompted.

"Oh, right," she said, taking it awkwardly and letting go of it quickly.

Connor grinned. "No worries. I'm used to insane people. I had to put up with Spike after he became human."

Spike sighed. "About an hour, and we'll be in Sunnydale," he reported.

"What then?" asked Dana.

"Armed with her arms…pun intended…we face off with her captors," said Connor.

"Why do we need her arms?" asked Dana.

Spike chuckled, shifting gears. "It's a rather long story, one that would probably bore you to tears," he said.

Connor sighed. "My girlfriend broke up with me," he said, changing the subject.

"Secret identity bit get to her? You should have told her," said Spike. "Total honesty. She might think you were a raving loon, but it's better than losing her, right?"

"I think I might," said Connor.

There was a long silence for a moment, broken only by the occasional chatter between Spike and Connor as they argued about their route and their destination. Dana was having trouble putting her finger on exactly what bothered her about their rapid-fire exchanges.

"You talk like you know each other," she said finally.

"Well, we are sort of brothers, or something," said Spike.

"My father was your grand-sire," said Connor. "So I'm your uncle!"

"And your mum was my great-grand-sire, so you're my brother. But she was also my sire's childe, which makes you my nephew. I'm your uncle and you're my uncle."

"Ooh, good one. I think I'm also sort of your brother."

"Brother? How do you figure that?"

"Well, Dru sired Darla who had me. Dru sired you. Angelus sired Dru and had me. So he's my dad, my great-grand-dad, and I think—since Darla sired him—my brother too. And since Darla sired him and he sired Dru and she sired you and Sired Darla who then had me, that makes me your brother."

Spike thought about the twisted logic. "That doesn't make any bloody sense."

"No, but it adds a sort of metaphorical depth, don't you think?"

"What?"

"Well, we were both thorn's in Angel's side. We both tormented him thoroughly. He treated us both like a kid."

"Although with me there's a distinctly Oedipal flavor, since we both loved the same woman," pointed out Spike.

"Hey, me too!" said Connor, miming a finger-snapping look of shock. "Imagine that!"

Dana stared at them. "This is gross, and icky, and wrong," she said.

"Could be worse," said Spike.

"How!" she demanded, affronted.

"I could mention that one time with Angel…"

"Oh my god!" said Connor.

line break-

_Look, I'm going to need everything this time, everything. Everything you never gave me._

She can't love. That's the problem with these human things, and the half-breed vampires. They have a range and depth of emotion that she would have thought impossible. It infects her. Infests her.

_Bloody hell, I don't need your love! I've already had too much love for one man, or one beast, whatever I am._

And now she found herself all too human, an evolutionary step backwards. Was that how they had begun to destroy the world, by changing her in the first place? Or was that just an accident?

_I believe in accidents. But not in coincidence. They brought you here, Knox brought you here. It was an accident that you chose us over him. It was an accident that you stood with us. No coincidence that they found a way to use you._

She hadn't heard his voice in a long time. Only now that he had recovered a part of her could they have this intimate communication before.

_I told you before, we're not intimates. For crying out loud. I'm already buggered by love!_

She thinks that maybe some of her feelings are just left over, like a love for the wonderful man who had been so devoted he had even loved her husk, her shell, until his death. But whatever she feels for this pet of hers, it is entirely hers. It is unique. She thinks.

_Stay cool. We're there._

line break-

"I wish Angel could have come with us," grumbled Xander, trying to shift into a higher gear. The clutch made a whining noise.

Faith, sitting in the passenger seat, winced. "You want me to drive, X?" she asked.

"It's not me, it's this stupid car," he said. "Couldn't we have stolen a better car? I mean, honestly."

"You steal what you get. It's daylight. He can't."

"Couldn't we stuff him in the backseat under a blanket?"

"Oh, that's good. And when we get out to the desert and that big crater, maybe we'll have a fight in a giant dome to block out the sun so he can help us!" said Faith.

Xander made a noise in his throat that was almost a growl. He hated it when she defended the monsters. He remembered Angel offering him to Spike. He remembered Angel punching him in the face. He remembered Angelus trying to kill Buffy.

It was hard to remember Angel ever trying to help.

"This is nuts," said Faith. "Why can't Spike just be straight with us?"

Xander barked a laugh. "Oh, yes, the girl who neglected to mention to the Scoobies that she was now playing for the other side is going to nitpick little things like taking on the bad-guys singlehandedly! And you're sitting right beside the guy who never told the Scoobies when he was having troubles, heaven forbid! None of us ever tell anyone anything!"

Faith hesitated. "Are we talking about Spike and saving the world, or are we on your issues now?"

"Both. They're very related," Xander assured her.

She gave him a hard look. "Are they?"

"Spike tops my list of issues," said Xander. "Right there. At the top. And I think a lot of my trust issues are because of him too."

"And not me, and that whole strangle-you thing?"

"Well, you helped. But he started it, in all fairness."

"Whoa, hold on. After I slept with you and you tried to save me, I tried to kill you. When did he betray you?"

"Only every single time we gave him an inch. Buffy made a deal with him, told him to get out of Sunnydale. He came back. He was chipped, and we protected him. And he turned us over to Adam. He's a virus, one that always turned on us."

Faith rolled her eyes. "So it just _helped_ your issues that I betrayed you?"

"Yeah," said Xander. "You want irony? Irony is when I turned around and walked out on Anya at the altar. You want to talk betrayal? That was me. I took everything I'd learned and used it to screw up again."

Faith stared at him. "Funny, that's one I've never heard," she said softly.

"Yeah, well, nobody talks about Anya now," said Xander. "I think they're trying to keep from saying something that will make me cry or something. It's crazy."

"Yeah. Any fool can see you aren't going to cry," said Faith.

"Darn skippy."

They drove on, and she watched him out of the corner of her eye.

line break-

"Come on, a vision!" yelled Angel, stared at the ceiling. "Just show me how this all works together! Show me how this makes sense! I swear that I'll do it right!"

There was nothing but silence from above.

"Just a hint what I should do?" he asked, sitting back down in the darkness, staring upward. "Come on, you showed me before that Spike was going to die, you had me save him! Show me what I have to do now! Show me!"

There was nothing.

"Why do you do this to me? Why do you torment me?" he asked, shouting.

"Angel, Angel, Angel," tut-tutted a voice behind him. Angel whirled, staring.

Lindsey stood there, an easy smile on his face.

"You! You're dead!" spat Angel. "Did Wolfram and Hart pull your contract back up?"

"I wish," chuckled Lindsey. "No, I'm sorry to say you saved me from them. I got a full write-off. A chance to redeem myself. A ticket out. A… is that enough clichés?"

"You're working for the Powers? Pull the other one," scoffed Angel.

"I'm sorry, can we take a moment here?" asked Lindsey. "You had me knocked off, you jerk!"

"Can I just say, that was my best decision in years!" snapped Angel.

Lindsey shrugged. "So… destiny. Funny thing, huh, Seer?" He grinned, gloating.

Angel rolled his eyes. "And the Powers chose your ringer for the Champion. Get over it, already!"

"Hm? Spike? Spike is out of the equation," said Lindsey, confused. "No, this is about you, big guy."

Angel scowled at Lindsey. "Spike is the Champion."

For a long moment the ghost stared at the vampire, and there was a very real hatred in his eyes. Finally, Angel spoke again. "Spike has been lying to me?"

Lindsey sighed. "What did he tell you?" he asked, strolling closer. He was wearing a crimson-red shirt, probably to hide the blood stains, Angel thought.

"Don't you know?" taunted Angel.

Lindsey's face twisted. "I'm just a messenger, kid. What did he tell you?"

"That he got my Shanshu," said Angel.

"Yeah, and?" asked Lindsey. "He's human now. No powers. How could he be a Champion? We need somebody who's able to fight, don't we? He did his job. He ended the final Apocalypse. Now, we need you."

Angel sighed, leaning back against the wall. "He still has powers."

"No he doesn't. That's…"

"Impossible?"

Lindsey took a breath. "You know, he totally screwed up the one job I had for him. You know, the one where he was supposed to kill you. So, this wasn't part of the equation. We're ready for you to be both Seer and Champion."

"He lied to us!" snarled Angel, spinning around. Then he turned back. "Then why did the Powers send me the vision to save him?"

Lindsey grinned lazily. "Actually, this is where I point you to a prophecy. You weren't there to save Spike, you know."

"Faith? Xander?" asked Angel, leaning forward.

Lindsey shrugged. "Actually, both. There's a prophecy—"

"I've had it to here with prophecies!" spat Angel.

Lindsey tilted his head back. "Get on it, Angel," he said softly. "It's a prophecy related to your Shanshu prophecy. Very related. Call it the cousin. You can find it in the Boy Watcher's collection."

"Xander?" asked Angel. "He has a collection of prophecies?"

"Yeah," said Lindsey. "By the way, you know why I finally agreed to take this job? They promised I'd never have to talk to you."

Then he turned and walked away, fading away into nothing in the shadows. Angel scoffed. "You call that an exit?"

line break-

Spike watched the sun overhead while Connor and Dana dug the hole deeper, standing on the lip of the crater over them.

Dana glanced up. "Are you going to help us, or what?" she asked.

Connor glanced to Dana. "Don't mind Spike," he said. "This is a little hard for him."

Dana glanced down at the shovel in her hands. "It's kinda hard for me too!" she protested.

Connor leaned closer, and lowered his voice. "Spike's not supposed to be able to do this," he whispered. "She said he couldn't resurrect her, and so… well, he's fighting it. You can see that."

Spike hopped down off the lip, landing beside Connor. "Actually, she's given me a free hand," he said irritably. "I've just been watching for that dragon."

"Dragon?" said Dana, giving a start.

"Bloody thing," muttered Spike. "And have I mentioned how much I hate doing this? I've betrayed the Scooby gang one too many times, and I thought I was over that sort of thing. Now I'm right back where I started."

"Come on, Spike," said Connor. "It's not that bad."

Spike snorted. "Not that bad, the kid says. Right along we've been screwing with their heads. Right from the start we've lied and kept secrets and generally worked towards our own agenda. At some point people are going to start being suspicious of us, and then everything's going to hit the fan."

"Why?" asked Dana, a hard tone in her voice. "What are you hiding?"

"What am I not hiding, pet?" asked Spike. He looked at her, and in the hard slopes and planes of his face she could only see a monster, even if he was human. "I hid my humanity. I hid my powers. I hid my feelings. I hid my goal to save Angel."

"And you hid your goal to save Illyria," said Connor.

He shrugged. "They wouldn't understand," he said.

Connor nodded, continuing to dig. "How could they understand?" he asked. "It's not like we told them."

Spike glared at him. "And, even more importantly, I hid the source of my powers," he pointed out. "I misled them, let them think that I got these powers from some pure source, from the good guys. After all, they'd just get uptight if they knew I was serving some ancient evil force."

"I knew it!" crowed Dana, lifting her shovel like a weapon.

"Hey!" said Connor. "Cool it! Nobody's killing Spike."

She turned to stare at him. "And what would you do about it?" she asked. "You're human."

"Actually, I'm a human child born to two vampires, gifted with powers no mortal should ever have," said Connor. "Except the Slayers, I guess. I'm still iffy on where they get their power."

"Hey!" said Spike. "They're pure. They're goodness! That's where their power comes from!"

"Actually," said Dana, "according to Giles, now we know that the ancient Watchers infused demonic energy in young girls. They chose young girls because they're the best at resisting the evil within, the ones best able to make the right choice despite the power. Or something like that. I think he made it up, and they chose us because they thought they could control us."

Spike stared at her. "You can't be serious!" he protested. "Who came up with this?"

"Apparently Buffy learned it during the battle with the first… first something."

"First Evil," muttered Spike. "You'd think they'd tell me these things before I go of and make a ponce of myself bragging about the purity and goodness and wonderful roots of Slayer power—you see! You're nearer to me and D-Boy than you thought, aren't you? All three of us get our power from something evil!"

Dana stared at him, disturbed by the thought. "Ew!" she said.

Spike laughed. "I was right about Buffy, wasn't I? She had a dark side to her, a demon in her. And I was so wrong to tell her to give into it. Her strength came from that battle, from finding what was good in the evil calling to her!"

Dana stared at him. "Is this one of your touchy-feely speeches?"

Spike groaned, shaking his head. "You need to find your way through the darkness. Faith did. Buffy did. That's what made them strong."

"Strong," said Dana, her eyebrows rising a little. "I'm already strong."

"Not in your fists," said Spike. "Where it really counts. In your heart. In your head."

Dana rolled her eyes a little. "You really are a bit crazy, aren't you?" she asked.

"Bint," he muttered.

line break-

It was over in a dazzling flash of light. A monumental attack of arrogance, a weapon worth dying for.

_It wasn't your fault._

She wants to believe him, but the truth is so much worse. She could have resisted, could have stopped them. But by then there was nothing left but the fight.

She wishes she had his confidence.

She stares into the eyes of her captor, the man who would be her friend, and listens to him patter on and on about the nature of good and evil, and her place in the world.

She doesn't like being told her place.

_Isn't that the truth! You and me, we got on fine, because neither of us likes being kicked to the curb. And we were, weren't we? Well, that's fine. When this boy gets kicked down, he kicks back!_

She should never have agreed to his insane plan, his insane logic. But he is irresistible, a powerful force of nature.

Almost as powerful as herself.

_Bloody arrogant bint!_

And, like her, he does not sugar-coat the truth. He doesn't wrap pretty lies around the way things are, or what he thinks. He lets it all out.

She smiles, then. She likes that about him, likes the very real way he deals with the world. And her captor misinterprets the smile, thinks that he has struck a nerve, and begins to rant loudly about infestations.

And she's not annoyed any more. Her enemies are all around her, but she has overcome them.

_That's the spirit._


	29. Resurrection

Disclaimer: I don't own a thing.

Summary: Post AtS and BtVS, Faith and Xander are approached by a secret government agency. Surprises all around.

Rating: PG-13

Chapter 29: Resurrection

The minute the sun was down Angel was out of the warehouse. He found an abandoned car in minutes and smashed the window. Getting in he glanced around, trying to see if anyone had noticed.

Several had, but they didn't move to stop him. They knew better than that. He didn't find any keys, but that wasn't a huge problem. Spike had shown him long ago how to hotwire a car.

He sped out of there, not bothering to buckle up.

As he barreled down the highway he tried to remember the exact moment Spike had become somebody to go save, rather than somebody to save people from. It must have been during the year he worked for Wolfram and Hart, obviously, but he couldn't find the exact moment.

There hadn't been any moment when getting along with Spike had become easier. That would never happen. He still hated the bleached ex-vampire with a passion. But at some point between the moment Spike had burst out of the amulet and the moment Spike had arrived in hell to save him, Angel had begun to genuinely worry about what would happen to Spike, to genuinely try to find a way to save him.

He'd thought he had succeeded. Both when he had transferred the Shanshu to Spike, and when he had saved Spike from Drusilla's minions.

But, as usual, Spike had found a way to get in trouble again.

Angel ground his teeth as he shifted gears. Spike was the bane of his existence, he decided. He should have staked the vampire after Drusilla had Sired him, rather than giving him an education.

Especially since that had been Angelus' education, one that had turned Spike into more of a monster than he had ever been on his own. Even a conscienceless William the Bloody was more a man than Angel had ever been, which bothered him.

Not as much as the idea of Spike dying, oddly enough.

"I'm off to save Spike," said Angel bitterly.

Spike, who had apparently obtained supernatural powers from some source other than the Powers. Angel couldn't believe he'd fallen for Spike's act that he'd kept some of his vampiric powers just as part of his reward. Of course that wasn't part of the deal! The Powers had told Angel that he couldn't Shanshu too soon or else he wouldn't have a part in the Final Apocalypse.

Which Spike had already taken.

Angel wondered what this meant for him. The big one had already passed, and now he was serving the Powers as an errand boy. He wondered if they would dangle some new bait in front of him.

Worse, he wondered if that was a good reason to fight the good fight. Wasn't that selfish? Wouldn't it be better just to fight for no reward?

The way Spike apparently was?

Angel ground his teeth again.

line break-

Dana watched Spike stuff the second arm in the bag alongside the first, brushing dirt off it. "I'm confused about one thing," she admitted finally.

"Just one?" said Connor. "You're way ahead of me." Of course, Connor had been accumulating questions for quite some time, as he had a substantial head start.

She ignored him. "Why are they trying to destroy the world? I mean, sure, evil, and all that. But what do they gain from the total destruction of the earth?"

Connor nodded. The single-minded destruction of other people he could understand, but the idea of trying to destroy the world, which of course meant that those destroying the world would die too…that was a little weird, to him.

Spike sighed. "That's a question I ask so often… it never gets old, truly. The way I figure it, there's too much good in this world. Drives them mad."

Connor laughed. "There's a lot of bad in this world too," he pointed out, disagreeing with Spike. He'd seen a lot of that evil firsthand, even caused a lot of it.

"No comparison," sniffed Spike. "Look at all the work evil does to keep up! Love alone keeps them behind. Look at a bunch of old married's, with wrinkles. You think evil can come up with anything that powerful in a thousand years? All they've got going are destruction and mayhem and such."

Dana's eyes twinkled. "So, you're a big believer in love, huh?"

"Makes the world go round, pet," said Spike smoothly. "Why, you don't believe?"

"Love is a lie that people tell you when they hurt you," she said flatly. "Love is something men talk about to make you lower your defenses, something your parents say before they disappear and the bad things happen."

Spike stared at her. "And you're a bloody poster child for it," he said.

"For what?" said Dana.

Spike shrugged. "For hate," he said. "That's all you have if you don't have love, you know. An empty, burning hate that'll scour you out and tear you apart."

And even if it didn't make a lot of sense to her, Dana still got an angry, mad look on her face. She understood part of that sentence, the part that seemed to her to be an insult, and she didn't like it at all.

"All right," said Connor, stepping it to ward off any hostilities. "Since we have both arms, it's only a matter of time till they track us down using her unique thaumaturgic signature."

"Best be on the move, then," said Spike, and there was a relieved look on his face.

"I was planning to fight them as they came, but we can go with your plan," said Connor.

"Face them as they come? Nuts to that," said Spike, scoffing. Dana noted that his scoff involved a whole-body movement, a derisive shrug of the shoulders and bob of the head that conveyed complete contempt.

Connor sighed. "All right, then, where to?"

"To her, of course," said Spike.

"You know where she is?" asked Dana, surprised. If he knew where the rest of her body was, then why had they bothered to track down her arm?

"I bloody well ought to, eh?"

"What? Why ought you to? Er. Why?"

Spike smirked at Dana, curling his tongue behind his teeth. "Because, pet, we have two arms, now. We've united her power. She's getting more powerful. And the more powerful she gets, the more she sings to me."

line break-

There were many things on many worlds that Illyria thought could destroy her. She feared none of them as she feared her pet.

_Too right. It's caring that's dangerous. I started with one girl, one silly human girl, which was dangerous enough. I nearly killed myself for her. Then I opened my bloody heart up and started caring for other things. First for the girl you were, then for the whole bloody lot… even Angel. I think, near the end, I was starting to care about everything._

He had died to save the world, it was true. And, as usual, he was right. She feared him because she felt moved to protect him, because she cared what happened to him. He was a mere vampire, or he had been, and she should never have cared what happened to him.

'_S called humanity, pet. Hurts, doesn't it?_

The real pain came from what had already happened. Whatever came next she could deal with, could destroy.

_You can destroy it all, except for your own feelings. And that's what really counts, isn't it? What drives us. What hurts us. What gets deep inside and buggers us._

She writhed, hating and loving the infestation of humanity into her. And naturally her pet just made it worse. He was in love with humanity; hadn't he just said so? He'd died for the world. Small wonder he was so eager to evangelize her to its wonders.

_That's me, shilling for the world._

The ultimate joke was on him, of course. For all that he could convince her to love the world, their enemies could turn her on him at any moment. Her own body betrayed her, and the world. She could feel little waves of unreality passing through her at the thought.

_Funny thing is, that was me, not so long ago. My body betraying me. Betraying those I loved. A little thing in my head turning me back into the killing machine I'd always been, courtesy of the First._

Yes, but he didn't actually have the power to destroy this universe in an instant. She did.

_I'm not going to let that happen, pet. You and I, we said we'd watch out for each other, didn't we? And I did. Even when watching out for you meant cutting you into little bits and burying you all over the West Coast. Don't think it was easy, either. It hurt._

Sometimes she was certain she was mad. Or else perhaps he had gone mad. Certainly their plan was mad—the crazy melding of two minds horribly unsuited to the task.

But, then again, it had turned out so well, hadn't it? Now their battle was nearly won, if she could believe the crazy half-breed who had rescued her in so many different ways. Now their enemy was at last within reach, in a place where they could strike the enemy.

_And it wasn't an easy task, either. Certainly not as hard as the First was._

Still, she couldn't help but be pleased that at long last she was going to see him again. He was her only friend in this strange world—even if she would admit to no one else that the former Queen of the universe now admitted to having a friend.

line break-

Tracking Spike and the others was all too easy, since he had kept Buffy's car. With the monitor Angel had given them it was child's play to stay behind the others as they headed back south, towards LA again, this time taking a circuitous route.

"Why this way?" asked Xander.

"So they wouldn't meet anyone chasing them. Or maybe because they're heading somewhere else. It doesn't matter," replied Faith.

Somehow during the drive she'd managed to put a hand around his shoulders, despite the fact that her arms were shorter than his and she was shorter than him. She gave a gentle squeeze to his shoulders as she said this.

His hand on her knee gave a reciprocating squeeze, and she felt a warm shiver go down her spine.

"They're stopping."

Faith slowed down, and when they found the abandoned car Xander looked around at the desert surrounding them. "Why the desert?" he complained.

"Could be worse," said Faith, getting out the car and shutting it off in one quick move. "Now we have to find them."

line break-

Illyria's armless body lay on an altar, motionless, while the robed priests or acolytes or whatever they were chanted out their spells, waving their arms hypnotically.

Their leader was leaning over her body, whispering to her how she could finally fulfill her destiny and destroy this world, leaving them all in ashes.

Their words were powering up her body, restoring the full powers that would disrupt the universe in an instant. She wondered what they thought would happen to them afterwards. It certainly wouldn't be a cakewalk of any sort. Being dead usually wasn't.

The ground rippled with energy, and she knew that whatever they did next could destroy the world.

_Ah, but you know that's not how we planned it, eh, love?_

And the psychic link with Spike caused her to smile, a bright, elfin smile that for a moment threw the man leaning over her off his stride, and his words about destiny and fate skittered to a halt.

She would have liked to speak, but she couldn't. So for a moment he was confused, and didn't get to hear the laughing taunts she had prepared for him.

line break-

Spike squatted down behind the ridge-line, shaking his head. "There's a lot of muscle with them," he said, his rough voice catching. "More than I've seen in one place in a while. We'll have to hit them hard and fast. Slayer-girl, they're demons, and they're evil. This is it. I'm giving you permission to tear them to pieces."

"I don't think I need your permission to tear these guys apart," said Dana, peeking up over the ridge. "I think it's my sacred duty."

"Yep," said Connor, nodding, selecting his favorite broadsword out of Spike's bag. "What about you, Spike? Are you up to this?"

Spike sighed. "I think we're in deep enough now that I can go all-out," he said flatly, retrieving Illyria's arms. He grasped them around the shoulders, extending the hands back towards her body. "Remember, if I get her arms back on her, she'll be fully mobile once again."

"Why isn't she mobile now?" asked Dana.

"She's a magical creature, pet, not a physical one. Not having her arms drains her. She probably won't be in complete control, so leave her to me."

"Leave her to you," said Dana blankly. "Right, sure."

Spike sighed, closing his eyes. "I think I'll need the armor," he said, his voice dubious. "If I can get it. I'm not sure she's strong enough yet."

Connor laughed quietly, readying himself to attack again. "Then let's do it, eh?"

The leather sheath flowed off Illyria's arms, covering Spike instantly like a second skin. A longer flap became a duster for him, colored the same odd swirl of browns as the leather covering him. Dana stared at him, speechless.

"Serving a God-Queen has its little advantages," said Spike. "Let's go."

He and Connor beat Dana over the ridge, sprinting. They ran silently, trying to hold on to the element of surprise as long as possible.

The first demon to notice them lost his head before he could yell out an alarm, and the tiny army of powerful demons was almost caught off guard. But at the last moment the tiny, grey demon standing over Illyria, one of the senior partners, noticed them, and screamed.

The battle was joined a moment later.

Spike struck out with Illyria's arms, holding them by the shoulders, and her hands grabbed and tore and wrenched at the demons, a flurry of impossible strength. Spike roared, spinning and striking out with his own strength.

As a vampire, he'd never been this strong. So close to Illyria now, her rage fueled his strength, and he was able to match the strongest Fyarls hit for hit and blow for blow as they attacked him.

Other, more dangerous demons charged him, only to be met by Connor and his flashing, whirling sword. At his most powerful, Connor had been one of the most feared creatures on Quor'toth, a place filled with dangerous and fearsome creatures.

He'd lost a little of that edge, but not too much.

He whirled and attacked, slashing and hitting with all the impossible strength his heritage had given him.

Dana had been barely trained in using her powers, but she was a Slayer. She tore through the demons with her bare hands, killing them as fast as they came at her, howling and shrieking.

The senior partner watching this backed away from Illyria slowly, all too aware that this was not going the way it should have gone. He turned to run, only to find Illyria's feet clamped on both sides of his neck.

She wasn't supposed to be able to move, and in his sudden terror he wet his pants, screaming.

With a quick move she snapped his neck, dropping him, then flipped herself upright, letting out a battle cry. The demons froze, giving Spike the opportunity to throw her arms at her.

They attached themselves to her as if they had never been gone, a flash of blue light letting everyone know that the scene had changed, and not for the better. She lashed out immediately, grabbing a robed priest from beside her and swinging him in a circle, sending the others flying, and then threw him at a large demon, letting out a guttural howl of excitement.

By the time Xander and Faith showed up the night was filled with blood and violence, and the ground was strewn with dead demons.

Spike and Connor were fighting back to back, cutting down any demons that approached them. Dana was fighting alone, battling a Fyarl, while Illyria stood on top of the altar, trying to catch her breath.

Faith cut down a demon, noting that several were trying to escape. "You could have just included us on this one, Spike!" she said.

Spike glanced at her. "The worst is yet to come," he said sorrowfully. "You shouldn't be here."

Then Illyria jumped down from the altar, slashing out with one hand. The blow sent Dana flying through the air, a strangled scream barely making it out of her mouth before she slammed into the ground, crashing across the sand.

Faith immediately jumped forward, slamming a fist into Illyria. Illyria barely felt it, and replied with a backhand that knocked Faith down onto the ground.

"They've trapped her well and good," said Spike sadly, shaking his head. "Trapped her in her own body."

_Help me!_

He didn't even look around to see if the others had heard it. He jumped forward, attacking Illyria, reaching for her throat with one hand. She batted him aside, snarling wordlessly.

Xander had his crossbow at the ready and fired, but she grabbed the bolt out of the air, trying to stab Spike in the chest with it. He whirled and dodged, trying again to grab at her throat.

She slammed the crossbow bolt through his forearm, causing him to howl in pain, then slammed a fist into his face, knocking him backwards through the air. He came down with a crunch and a loud snarl.

Then Connor danced forward, swinging his sword in lazy circles, forcing her back as he moved slowly, carefully, a dangerous look on his face.

"You don't just go around hitting Spike," he said.

She hissed, trying to hit him. He blocked with the sword, dancing to the side, his feet making loud hissing noises as they blurred over the ground.

Dana crawled over to Faith, helping her sit up. "Are you all right?" she asked.

Faith managed to nod, glancing at Xander, who was cautiously circling Illyria and Connor to join them. "Stay back!" she ordered him forcefully.

"I can't!" he whispered, reloading the crossbow. "If I can just get one good shot, that's it!"

"No!" growled Spike, climbing to his feet and staggering towards Xander. "You stop shooting, right now! You might kill her!"

Xander's jaw dropped. "She just half-killed you and you want to keep her alive!"

"She didn't do that. They did." Spike tried to pull the bolt out of his arm, and collapsed to one knee from the pain, letting out another growl. "The blighters," he added, gasping for breath.

He gave it another tug, and this time managed to get it out. He threw the bloody bolt down on the ground between them both. "We can save her!" he spat. "You lot stay out of this. It's none of your concern."

A car flew over the nearest sand-dune, stopping just feet from Spike. He gave a dramatic sigh, hanging his head. "I shoulda guessed," he muttered.

Angel stepped out of the car, staring at Spike. "What are you dressed in?" he demanded.

Spike glanced down at his armor, a mirror of Illyria's armor. "You don't want to know." Then he turned and leapt back into the fray, trying again to grab Illyria. She kicked him off of her, grabbing Connor's sword by the blade and shattering it.

Angel growled, jumping at her. She moved so fast that even his vampire reflexes weren't fast enough, and punched him in the face, sending him staggering backwards.

Then Connor tried to skewer her with what was left of his sword, a foot-long jagged shard, lunging forward quickly. The sword fragment shattered on her armored skin, and she let out a triumphant wordless shout, twirling around and kicking him so hard he flew backwards, smashing into Angel.

Then Spike was up again, blood covering half his face, and he leapt forward, slamming into Illyria, this time managing to get his hands on her.

There was a concussive blast, and everybody was knocked backwards, tumbling and falling to the ground from the violence of the blast.


	30. Ways and Means: The Epilogue

Disclaimer: I don't own a thing.

Summary: Post AtS and BtVS, Faith and Xander are approached by a secret government agency. Surprises all around.

Rating: PG-13

Chapter 30: Ways and means; the epilogue

Faith recovered slowly, groaning and pulling herself upright. She glanced around and saw Xander and crawled over to him slowly, feeling the cuts on her right knee scratch across the sand.

When she reached him she curled up into the crook of his shoulder, pressing her face against him and breathing deeply, inhaling his scent. "I am sick of getting beat up like this," she groaned.

"I think Spike is almost done," wheezed the barely conscious Xander, glancing at her with eyes that weren't quite right. It took her a moment to realize that one was larger than the other, and he was clearly concussed.

A boot appeared in front of her face, and she glanced up at Angel, who towered over her.

"I think it's over now," he said.

Faith glanced back, wrapping her arms around Xander. Illyria stood beside the altar, and Spike was standing beside her, laughing.

Faith felt a little tug of resentment that the blood-stained ex-vampire could laugh so easily about this. Illyria had thrown them all around a moment ago, and now he could make jokes about it? That didn't seem right.

Xander's hand curled in her hair, holding her against him as best he could. "I need a vacation," moaned the young Watcher.

Angel sighed, squatting down beside him. "You have a collection of prophecies?" he asked quietly.

Xander stared up at him. "Y-yeah," he stuttered, his eyes narrowing. "Why?"

Faith sat up, pulling Xander with her. "Dana!" she shouted.

The crazy Slayer vaulted the altar, kicking Illyria, knocking the Hell Goddess to her knees. Dana let out a shriek, pulling back an arm to punch Illyria.

Spike grabbed Dana's arm, whirling her around, and punched her in the face, knocking her down. "Stop that!" he said harshly. "Trouble's over now. No need for that." He looked angry, decided Faith, pulling herself to her feet.

Angel moved closer. "Dana, are you all right?" he asked, bending over her.

She pulled herself to her feet shakily. "You hit me!" she snapped at Spike, anger in her eyes.

"You hit Illyria!" he retorted.

"She hit me first!" snapped Dana.

Spike rolled his eyes. "Haven't you been paying any bloody attention? She wasn't in control. They were using her, turning her against us."

"But with my High Priest's assistance, I was able to regain control," said Illyria haughtily, glaring at the Slayer. "If you should strike me again, I would have to tear you apart."

Spike laughed, clapping Illyria on the shoulder. "I think she likes you, pet."

Faith moved closer, staring at Spike. "Are you all right?" she asked suspiciously. "I remember an explosion…"

"Who are these females?" asked Illyria, sneering at them both. "I do not care for the way they seem concerned for you. Have you started a harem in my absence?"

Spike chuckled. "Oh, I wish," he sighed. "No, these are Slayers. This is Faith, and that's Dana. You remember Angel, of course."

"I don't understand!" said Faith. "Why'd you explode when you touched her? And who was her High Priest, the little grey guy who she killed?"

"No, that was the bad guy," said Spike. "I'm her High Priest. And when I touched her I was able to channel back the powers she gave me, and break through their control of her."

Illyria sighed. "I still feel the world ending through my presence," she said.

"What?" asked Angel, suddenly concerned.

"It'll be all right," said Spike. "D-boy and I were researching it."

"Yeah," said Connor, from behind Angel. Angel gave a little start, glancing back at his son. Not many people could sneak up on him, but Connor had inherited all of his sneaky genes, apparently.

"And we can fix it," concluded Spike.

"Hold on, Spike is her high priest?" asked Dana, scowling at the others. "Am I the only one who doesn't like that?"

Spike sighed. "No, you're not," he said, glancing at Angel, who was glowering down at him.

"Of course I don't like it." Angel's eyes narrowed. "You've entered into service to a Hell Goddess, Spike!"

Spike shook his head. "Service is such a harsh word," he said. "We made a pact, a deal, to help each other out. And since I didn't have the power any more, she gave it to me. She helped me out when I needed it."

"All I asked in return was that he serve me."

Angel stared at Illyria. "Serve you," he repeated, the words filled with sarcasm.

"You know, protect her, worship her, be loyal to her… help her tell right from wrong, find her a spot of violence, occasionally act as her Jiminy Cricket. The whole nine yards."

Angel sighed. The handsome lines of his face arranged themselves into an unhappy brood, and he glanced back at Connor, looking for clues from his son.

Connor nodded happily. "Spike and I researched it afterwards. It seems like a good deal for both of them. An earthly anchor for her, powers for him."

"Wasn't any good to anyone as a human," muttered Spike.

"Dealing with the devil," whispered Angel. "Didn't you warn me about that?"

Spike glowered at him, putting an arm around Illyria's shoulders. "Shove it!" he instructed Angel. "I said I'd protect her. To do that I've already had to cut her up and bury her, and fight her. I think that speaks volumes about what we're doing. Sure, I've traded masters, but I think I'll get more done this way."

Angel sighed. "Let's head back to town before the sun rises," he suggested.

Spike glanced back. "Three cars," he muttered. "Me an' Blue will take Buffy's. Angel, you take D-Boy and symbolic-girl with you, eh? And you two will follow, right?"

Faith glanced back at Xander, taking his hand. "Sure. Back to the warehouse?"

"Nah. It's time we reported back to headquarters," said Faith. "We'll stop at a motel. And get separate rooms for everybody."

Xander frowned at her. "Okay," he said.

As they all walked back to their cars Dana shook her head. "I don't like this at all," she said. "A deal with the devil?"

Angel sighed. "He just got away from having one demon in his head," he said nastily. "He must have missed it."

Connor shook his head. "You guys have no idea," he said. "Things were falling apart. She was going to destroy the world, and we couldn't stop her, and she couldn't stop herself. We needed a way. It was the only way."

Angel sighed. "What will we do now?" he asked.

"Prob'ly back to England," said Spike, following Angel.

"Oh. Do you suppose we could stop in Brazil first?"

Xander waited till he and Faith were in the car. "Any particular reason you want separate rooms for everybody?" he asked carefully. It felt an awful lot like she was pushing him away, but he didn't want to jump to any conclusions.

"Yeah," she said firmly. "Look, I heard your whole 'not-just-another-notch-on-your-bedpost' speech, and I liked it. I did. I respect that. And I want us to have more than just a physical relationship, really, I do. But I'm only human, you know." And her hand was on his knee, suddenly, as she started the car lefthanded somehow, her hand snaking around the steering wheel. "And I almost lost you back there, I thought I had, and back with Drusilla too, and I'm getting sick of feeling like I'm about to lose you, and I want you so bad it nearly hurts. So I want the others out of our hair for a few hours."

Xander's eyebrows went up. "A few hours?"

She grinned, the hand on his leg moving around in a decidedly aggressive way. "Say six or seven." She leaned over and kissed him, hard and hungry, and if Xander felt a little panicked it was only because she wasn't watching the road.

line break-

Buffy and Dawn were waiting at the airport for the flight. It wasn't crowded, since few people came in on the red-eye if they could help it.

Angel was the first one to get off the plane, and Buffy discovered for the first time in her life that she could see him without her chest constricting like her heart was going to explode. It was curiously liberating.

It helped that a leggy blond was hanging off his arm, she decided.

Behind them came Faith and Xander, who seemed to be attached at the hip. Buffy felt her blood run cold at the sight of them intertwined, and she had to force herself to breathe normally, glancing at Dawn to see if she was freaking out too. There was the slightest crease between Dawn's eyebrows, which Buffy took as an 'also freaking out.'

Behind them came Dana, blinking owlishly at the bright sun. Spike followed her, chatting with the stewardess who was escorting them off, a skinny brunette on his arm with a wide, happy grin on her face.

The sight of all the couples nearly drove Buffy into convulsions, but she forced it down. She was just feeling this was because two of the three were her exes, she reminded herself, and the other one was her best friend and the woman who'd tried to kill said best friend.

Dawn greeted them all while Buffy stood there with a frozen smile on her face.

"Hi, Buffy," said Angel, just a bit shyly. "This is Nina. She's, um, she and I are, um, a couple. We're together, I mean. Um. Nina, this is Buffy Summers, the Slayer, and her, um, sister, Dawn."

Dawn smiled at them both, and Buffy managed to nod.

"Oy, nibblet! Okay if I call you nibblet still?" said Spike loudly, pushing past Xander and Faith.

Dawn responded by grabbing Spike in a hug. This caused the skinny brunette to suddenly frown imperiously, and Buffy had to hold back a sigh.

He really had the worst taste in women. Drusilla, Harmony, now this woman who seemed friendly but went from smile to imperious glower in no time flat… Buffy was certain that she was only sane person Spike had ever loved.

Actually, she wasn't so certain about that.

"This is Illyria," said Spike, letting go of Dawn. "My Goddess."

Well, thought Buffy, at least he was treating somebody like a goddess now, even if it wasn't her.

Illyria scowled at Dawn. "You are a mystical construct disguised as a mortal. Don't think a disguise like that can fool the God-Queen of the Universe."

Buffy decided that this girl was the worst one of Spike's girlfriends so far.

Spike sighed. "Play nice, love, these are the good guys," he said patiently to Illyria. He glanced to Buffy. "Shall we head back to tweed-ville? I want to get out of here as soon as possible."

"We will leave when I am satisfied," said Illyria.

"Well, I guess we'll be staying a good long while then," Spike shot back quickly.

Buffy found, to her surprise, that she wasn't jealous at all. She actually had moved on. The smile on her face became more genuine. "All right, then, let's head back. We brought two cars."

line break-

Giles frowned down at the group in front of him. "So you are the Seer and Champion for the Powers now, traveling across the globe to, er…"

"Help the helpless," said Angel promptly. "It's sort of a mission statement."

"I'd like to go with him," said Faith. "Help out." There was a challenge in her words.

Giles sighed, glancing to Dawn. Dawn nodded. "It would be nice to have a connection to these Powers, especially if they give you advance warnings of the really bad things," she said, glancing at Xander. "You and Faith could be invaluable in that capacity, and I imagine Angel would appreciate your help."

Angel nodded, glancing at Xander. "Especially if you bring along those prophecies about the child of the Cyclops and the Slayer," he muttered under his breath, too low for anybody to hear him.

Giles glanced to Spike and Illyria, who had resumed her natural appearance, complete with bluish skin and haughty expression. "And, er…"

"My goddess and I will be traveling for a while," said Spike. "I'd like to show her around, let her see some of the sights on this planet, while teaching her right from wrong."

Giles sighed heavily. "You know, when you first came to us with the chip, I thought not staking a harmless vampire was the absolute worst moral dilemma you could ever possibly give me," he said glumly. "Since then you have absolutely stretched my moral compass."

Spike grinned unrepentantly. "And, yet, here I am, still on your side," he taunted the Watcher.

Giles sighed. "Again, I think it would be better if you would stay in contact with us… er, especially in terms of your contacts, and keeping us apprised of the world situation, and various minor conflicts, especially your quest to wipe out the Wolf, the Ram and the Hart."

Spike grinned. "Don't we get a Slayer of our own, like Angel?"

Angel glowered at Spike. "Don't push, Spike," he growled.

"I'd like to go with Spike," said Dana quietly.

"What!" said Giles, shocked by her sudden interjection. She hadn't spoken since arriving.

"He understands right from wrong a lot better than I thought," said Dana. "A lot better than I do. He knows things. A lot of things."

"Er…" Giles stared at her, then turned to Dawn, raising his eyebrows, his moral compass pushed far beyond his ability to cope. Dawn sighed, leaning closer to Giles.

"He can help her," she whispered. Giles stared at her, and then let out another aggrieved sigh.

"I guess. But we'll want a Watcher with you as well."

Dawn smiled at him as her mind automatically brought up the only real possibilities. Robin Wood, who hated Spike with a vengeance, and whose mother Spike had killed, or Andrew Wells, who loved Spike with a hero-worship that was embarrassing to behold.

Besides, that way she would have twice as many excuses to visit the two of them.

"Andrew will make a fine Watcher for Dana," she said quietly.

Spike's eyes widened. "No way!" he said unhappily.

Dana frowned, not understanding.

"Don't worry, pet, you're still coming along," Spike assured her. "This just means Illyria gets to learn twice as much pop culture as she would have. And only the geeky bits."

Buffy stood up, grabbing her cup. "I'm just going to get a drink," she said when every eye in the room turned to her. She scurried away, wondering what awful thing she had done to be put in this position. The awkward position of ex-girlfriend to the two morally ambiguous champions of goodness.

She supposed sleeping with both of them would have to be it.

In the kitchen she thought about _l'Eterno_, the pale imitation of a boyfriend who was safer than an actual relationship, and about the two exes she'd left in the other room, and about Riley. She wondered if she was finally ready to go looking for a relationship a little sturdier than that as she started going through the refrigerator, looking for something to drink.

She heard a glass clink behind her and glanced back to see Nina, Angel's girl, pouring herself some champagne.

"Hi there," said Nina. "Buffy, right?"

"Right," said Buffy, closing the refrigerator. She eyed Nina, wondering if the other woman had followed her.

"Listen, I don't mean to pry, but... you knew Angel, right? From way back?"

"Way back," agreed Buffy, cringing. Was it really that far back? More than a decade, she realized with a start.

Nina looked around. "I've been getting the distinct vibe that there's an ex of his here somewhere," she said. "Do you know anything about that?"

Buffy flexed her fingers. "As far as I know, his last ex was a brunette named Cordy," she said. It seemed safer than, 'yeah, hi, watch out for his whole I-have-to-leave-you-for-your-own-good-routine.'

Nina nodded. "Thanks," she said. "I'm not sure whether to be afraid to meet this ex or not, you know? I mean, on the one hand, he might have feelings for her still. On the other hand, I'd really like to find out if he's used that 'I-have-to-leave-you-for-your-own-good-routine' before."

Buffy couldn't hold her curiosity back any longer. "So, I heard his curse had been lifted." She tried to keep the words conversational.

Nina let out a sigh. "Yeah, and I can't tell you what a relief that was!"

"I bet," said Buffy, nodding. Celibacy wasn't a very exciting option.

"Every time I slept with him before, it was always a little disappointing to realize I wasn't making him perfectly happy… but a little euphoric, too, because he didn't turn evil and kill me. Talk about weird!"

Buffy felt a twinge of superiority, and carefully damped it down. Somehow dancing across the room singing 'I made him lose his soul!' seemed childish. "Yeah, weird," she said.

line break-

Buffy found Xander and Faith on the balcony overlooking Giles' gardens, making out. She cleared her throat and joined them, glancing away as they hastily rearranged their clothing.

"I guess it goes without saying that if you hurt him, I'll kill you?" asked Buffy sweetly.

Faith laughed. "Whoa, Buff! You're only the fourth person to say that."

"Really?" asked Buffy, surprised.

"Yeah, Willow and Giles got in before you. And, oddly, Dawn," said Xander. "Though to be fair, both Spike and Angel told me the same thing. Only about her. Y'know, the reverse."

Buffy nodded. "So you two are off with Angel and Nina, off to hunt down evil wherever you can find it."

"Yeah," said Faith. "I think that as soon as summer comes Connor is going to join us. Or maybe he'll join Spike, I have no idea. Although Angel's been threatening to go tutor him in handwriting skills if he can't bring his grades up."

Buffy laughed. "Well, that's good. Angel the responsible father."

Xander laughed in response, grinning at Faith. "Good god, the glint in your eye when she said father scares me half to death," he said.

Faith shrugged, resting her head on Xander's shoulder. "If Robin's any evidence, then Slayers can be pretty good mothers. Think about it."

Buffy giggled at the thought of Xander as a father. "What about Spike?" she asked. "Has he left with his… goddess?"

Xander nodded. "They took off early. Something about evil never resting, or something."

line break-

She knows it's nothing but pure luck that Spike managed to get his hands on her before she destroyed the world and restore her to a semblance of normality. But at times like this she's willing to believe that luck is better than good planning.

_That's how we'll save the world, pet._

Her strange new high priest doesn't want to serve her in the traditional manner of appeasing her and pleasing her. He wants to make her a better Goddess, to change her, make her as she should be.

She loves that about it. It's a sign that he truly cares about her, and not just what she can do for him.

_Don't be thinking those smooth words will cut you any slack the first time you start hitting the crazy Slayer, either. No more of that! You two will just have to get along._

Despite the grey shades he embodies, his moral clarity is quite fierce. Enough moral clarity for a former ruler of the universe, a former slayer of Slayers, and a half-crazed Slayer, at any rate.

Illyria holds back a smile. It would completely destroy her image.

**The End.**

A/N: And we end where we began, with a bunch of scenarios that sound like soap operas. I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it.

If you REALLY enjoyed reading this, there are sequels. Two sequels. One focuses on Spike, Dana and Illyria (If I Should Die Before We Wake); the other focuses on Angel, Xander, and Faith (A Child Shall Lead Them).

To confuse matters, although they split up they're meant to be read chronologically. First If I Should Die, then A Child.

They expand and explore, and when all's said and done, I think they're a lot of fun.


End file.
